Global Environment Facility investments in the phase-out of ozone-depleting substances

Stratospheric ozone depletion threatens human health and the global environment. In 1987, the Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer (Montreal Protocol) set aggressive timelines for countries to phase-out products and organic chemicals that were causing rapid ozone depletion in the Antarctic stratosphere. The Global Environment Facility (GEF), established in 1991, is the largest multilateral funder of environmental protection projects and provides financial support for implementation of the Montreal Protocol. This paper summarizes GEF investments to address ozone-depleting substances (ODS) in Countries with Economies in Transition (CEITs), presents case studies from representative countries, and discusses lessons learned. Complementing the work of the Multilateral Fund that supports developing country Parties of the Montreal Protocol, the GEF provides financial support to CEIT’s to address ODS phase-out targets and timelines. These investments include technology development and transfer, outreach and training, institution building, and programs to phase-out ODS. Working with partners in the public and private sectors, the GEF has allocated approximately US210 million, leveraging another US210 million, leveraging another US250 million in co-financing, for 28 ODS phase-out projects in 18 CEITs. GEF ODS project investments in CEITs have contributed to Protocol success by phasing-out 20,000 ozone depletion potential (ODP) Megagrams (Mg) of consumption and 29,000 ODP Mg of production. Among the GEF’s most significant efforts to eliminate ODS are projects that transfer technologies and strengthen institutional capabilities of partner countries. These projects have enabled the installation of non-ODS technologies, adoption of best practices by the private sector, and provided CEITs with the legislative and policy framework necessary to sustain ODS phase-out. Almost 25 years after its establishment, the Montreal Protocol with support from financial mechanisms such as the GEF, is a successful model for addressing global environmental challenges.     

The role of environmental management system on introduction of new technologies in the metal and chemical/paper/plastics industries

Pollution prevention with the use of modern cleaner technologies in industrial sectors is the cornerstone of successful environmental policy certified according to the requirements of the international standard ISO 14001. The analyses were performed with the objective of assessing general aspects of technology modernisation as a result of the ISO 14001 certification in industrial enterprises in order to develop a better understanding whether the ISO 14001 certification can accelerate initiatives for the adoption of new and cleaner technologies within the certified firms on one hand, and, on the other hand, to find out to what extent it helped to upgrade their environmental performance. The research was performed within Slovene metal and chemical (including pharmaceuticals, paper and plastics) manufacturing companies with an additional emphasis on firms which are committed to implementing the IPPC directive. In general, certified enterprises consider ISO 14001 as a very useful tool in promoting and adopting new cleaner technologies. ISO 14001 seems to be particularly important to create better conditions for the technology changes in companies which are committed to the IPPC Directive. Companies in chemical and related industries, to a much higher extent, used predominantly modified technologies to diminish their environmental impacts, while companies in metal industries, to a higher extent, used a combination of existing and new technologies after ISO 14001 certification. It seems that better environmental performance is associated with higher productivity in ISO 14001 certified firms.     

Advancing Towards a Hydrogen Energy Economy: Status,Opportunities and Barriers

Performance reliability advances and cost reductions have been achieved with hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in both the transportation and distributed energy sectors. This paper reviews the status of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, identifies key business and policy drivers for the hydrogen economy, critically examines key barriers to implementing the hydrogen economy, identifies and discusses key national initiatives to advance the hydrogen economy, and identifies and discusses key intergovernmental initiatives and activities to advance the hydrogen economy. Hydrogen and fuel cell technology advances, coupled with a reduction in costs and improvements in performance reliability, present new opportunities for developed and developing countries to achieve energy, economic and environmental security. Substantial national research and development investments in hydrogen production, storage, transport, end-use technologies (e.g., fuel cells), safety and public education underscore future opportunities. Intergovernmental bodies such as Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), International Energy Agency (IEA) and the International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy (IPHE) provide a multilateral framework for development of a global hydrogen economy. While the pathway forward for the hydrogen economy is precarious alternative energy options offer substantially fewer public benefits.     

Environmental performance and practice across sectors: methodology and preliminary results

This paper introduces a new methodology for measuring and modeling manufacturers’ environmental performance and the managerial and technological practices that affect it. Facility level licensing data are used to develop indicators based on sector-specific criteria but capable of being analyzed across sectors, at various levels of aggregation. This addresses the problem that environmental performance and determinants tend to be highly context-specific, while modeling and policy interests are often more general. Using Integrated Pollution Control (IPC) information generated EU-wide, this approach should be capable of cross-country extension. The methodology is tested on a sample of Irish facilities in three sectors during 1996–2004. Preliminary results show its usefulness in exploring the determinants of environmental performance at the sector and cross sector levels. Word count = 10,049.     

Mill’s scissors: structural change and the natural-resource inputs to labour

The environmental structural change strategy claims that by shifting our expenditures to economic sectors with lower environmental intensity, absolute resource consumption and environmental impact can be lowered. Environmental Input-Output methodologies for computing these intensities attribute no resource consumption to labour or households because these are not classified as sectors. The suggestion that service sectors entail less environmental impact, however, loses force if a unit of labour contains embodied energy, and attributing these inputs to labour drastically reduces intensity variation between sectors. Relative growth of service sectors has furthermore not been accompanied by decreased resource consumption; thus models whose intensity computations cover not only inter-firm payments but also labour earnings and household expenditures may have superior predictive power. If moreover natural-resource and labour inputs to product are incommensurable, intensity ratios themselves have perhaps only monetary, rather than real, significance.     

Financing for innovative technologies and best practices to reduce persistent organic pollutants

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) threaten human health and the global environment. Recognizing their dangers many countries began to limit or ban POPs production, use, and release in the 1990s. Eventually the Stockholm Convention on POPs, was adopted in 2001 and entered into force in 2004. The Global Environment Facility (GEF) provides financial support to developing country Parties for the implementation of the Stockholm Convention. The GEF’s POPs investment portfolio focuses on: 1) strengthening the capacity of developing country Parties to implement the Stockholm Convention; 2) establishing and supporting partnerships to develop and implement National Implementation Plans (NIPs), and 3) demonstrating and deploying best technologies and practices to reduce POPs emission, including development of safe alternatives. Since 2001 the GEF has committed US$568.8 million to POPs projects and leveraged some US$1474.5 million in co-financing from partners in the public and private sectors, bringing the total value of the GEF POPs portfolio to over US$2 billion. With GEF support, 108 developing country Parties have developed their NIPs. The GEF also financed 109 projects for the implementation of the Convention. Upon completion, these GEF POPs investments will contribute to the disposal of more than 70,000 tons of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) oil, contaminated equipments, and waste, more than 40,000 tons of obsolete POPs pesticides and associated waste, and reducing dioxin/furan and mercury emission by introducing environmentally sound technologies and best practices. This paper summarizes: 1) direct and indirect GEF investments to support the goals of the Stockholm Convention; 2) investment case studies on PCB, DichloroDiphenylTrichloroethane (DDT), chlordane and mirex, medical waste, obsolete POPs and engaging civil society; and 3) lessons learned in terms of GEF financing strategies, best technologies and environmental practices to address POPs.     

环境治理投入对经济增长的异质性影响研究——基于城市化的视角

在城市化水平不断提高的背景下,探究环境治理投入促进还是阻碍了经济增长,城市化在两者关系中扮演什么角色具有重要的现实意义。论文基于中国大陆2003—2015年31个省份的数据,运用面板门槛模型、系统广义矩估计方法探究环境治理投入与经济增长之间的关系。结果表明：1）环境治理投入与经济增长之间存在参数异质性,具有显著的门槛效应;2）环境治理投入对省际经济增长的影响因环境治理投入量的差异分为前期影响不显著、后期促进两个阶段;3）适度的城市化水平可以提高环境治理投入的效率,从而促进经济增长。基于此,论文认为应在继续增加环境治理投入的同时提高城市化水平,以城市化助力环境治理投入取得环境和经济效益的双赢。     

Integrated environmental product innovation in the region of Munich and its impact on company competitiveness

This paper examines the impact of environmental innovations on company competitiveness of both the environment industry and related sectors in the region of Munich. The focus is on the drivers of these innovations and their respective effects on innovating companies. Not only innovations in the area of end-of-pipe technologies, but also the development of integrated products and production methods are examined. In a regional case study approach, a sample of 14 manufacturing and service companies in Munich (Southern Germany) was interviewed. Essentially, environmental innovation is driven by a mixture of factors internal and external to the firm: not only regulatory pressure, but also cost pressure, competitive advantages, technological lead and customer pressure are important drivers. Regulatory pushed innovations contribute to the competitive performance of sample companies in a similar way as environmental innovations which are carried out voluntarily. That would yield proof for the so-called Porter hypothesis which assumes that environmental legislation stimulates innovation and leads to “win–win” opportunities where simultaneously pollution is reduced and productivity increased.     

中国1991~2010年环境污染事故频数动态变化因素分解

运用因素分解方法,将影响环境污染事故频数变化的因素分解为经济规模、污染治理资金规模和风险控制技术水平,构建了环境污染事故频数变化的完全分解模型,并对我国1991~2010年的数据进行实证分析.结果表明:环境污染事故年度间变化均值为-138起.其中,由经济规模、污染治理投资规模和风险控制技术水平所引起的频数变化分别为279起,-74起和-344起.总的看来:该时期经济规模增长对污染事故频数增加起到促进作用,但随着经济规模的增加,该效应对污染事故频数的促进作用减弱;1991~2005年污染治理投资效应有一定的随机性,对污染事故频数的增加基本起到遏制作用;风险控制技术效应对污染事故频数的增加起到遏制作用.环境污染事故频数变化是由各因素共同作用的结果,在不同时期各因素对污染事故频数变化所发挥的效应不同.     

Green renewal: incorporating environmental factors in equipment replacement decisions under technological change

Equipment replacement is a fact of life in every industrial setting, and this paper seeks to answer the question: How can firms and policy makers effectively balance environmental and economic concerns with respect to replacement decisions? A replacement model which includes both economic and environmental factors is presented. One must decide whether to keep the existing technology, upgrade to a newer technology which produces a smaller environmental burden, or wait for an even newer, cleaner technology which may be introduced soon. More than 25 000 test problems are solved, examining different objectives and covering a wide range of applications. Including environmental costs does not lead to a consistent increase in the adoption of cleaner technologies; however, including incentives to adopt newer technologies does. When one accounts for the environmental impact of producing new equipment and disposing of old equipment, earlier adoption of new technologies actually increases the total environmental burden in some cases.     

Employee participation and cleaner technology: learning processes in environmental teams

The approach to pollution prevention in Danish industries in the late-1980s and in the beginning of the 1990s met criticism, because the cleaner technology projects focused too narrowly on technical solutions implemented by experts. The objective of the project “Employee Participation in the Implementation of Cleaner Technology” was to develop a more active role for employees in the environmental activities of companies. Based on practical experiments in five Danish firms within different industrial sectors, the project concluded that employee participation can have a strong effect on changing working routines, affecting behaviour and increasing environmental consciousness. The project found that the firms' employees had a comprehensive understanding of environmental problems and solutions, including health and safety aspects. Furthermore, the employees in the environmental teams were able to improve the firms' environmental activities (e.g. setting up environmental policies, targets and action plans, implementing new procedures and technologies).     

Determinants of CO2 emissions in Brazil and Russia between 1992 and 2011: A decomposition analysis

This paper deals with the decomposition analysis of energy-related CO₂ emissions in Brazil and Russia from 1992 to 2011. The refined Laspeyres index (RLI) method applied and both aggregated and sectoral changes in CO₂ emissions decomposed. Brazil’s and Russia’s economies divided into three economic sectors including agriculture, industry and services. Impact of four main factors, such as economic activity, employment, energy intensity, and carbon intensity in CO₂ emissions changes were analyzed. The aggregated decomposition analysis revealed that Brazil is still far from a decoupling between economic growth and carbon dioxide emissions where Russia achieved a substantial decline in carbon emissions mainly due to the improved energy intensity. The empirical findings of sectoral decomposition analysis emphasized that the economic activity was the major CO₂ increasing factor in Brazil’s economic sectors. On the other hand the economic activity effect followed a reducing impact in Russia’s sectoral emissions until 2000. The structural changes between sectors and their impacts on CO₂ emissions were captured by employment effect. Energy intensity and carbon intensity effects underlined that environmental sustainability widely neglected in Brazil and Russia during the study period. The results yield important hints for energy planning and sustainable environment.     

中国的环境政策效应与污染治理效果分析

在简述环境政策和管理制度改革的基础上,对基产生的效应进行了分析,主要包括：经济改革促进了环境保护;环境保护新举措初见成效,但污染治理任务仍然十分艰巨。通过对各省区环境治理投资效果分析,提出未来环境政策和治理应该在以下几个方面加强：（１）重新设计环境影响评价和“三同时”制度,将它们与污染物总量控制战略结合起来（２）改善排污收费制度,由超标收费向排污收费转变;由单一浓度收费向浓度与总量相结合转变;由单     

Sustainable production and consumption systems—cooperation for change: assessing and simulating the willingness of the firm to adopt/develop cleaner technologies. The case of the In-Bond industry in northern Mexico

Over the last decade, literature on the “greening” of industry and environmental policy has provided numerous important insights into the determinants of the firm’s innovative behaviour in cleaner technologies. However, this literature still lacks empirically tested theoretical models. This paper contributes to fill this gap proposing a definitional system that enables the testing of hypotheses of dependence between willingness to innovate in cleaner technologies and its determinants, and to explore the conditions under which the firms’ innovative behaviour could be fostered. Regression and simulation outcomes indicate, against the general wisdom, that stringent environmental regulation without consideration to the dynamics of technical change, and environmental and economic risk perceptions in the part of firms would play against the promotion of innovation in cleaner production.     

Influence factors for scenario analysis for new environmental technologies – the case for biopolymer technology

New environmental technologies pose significant uncertainties because a clear prediction of their future development and application possibilities cannot be made. In order to include different future prospects in ‘firms’ and ‘policy-makers’ planning processes, scenario analysis constitutes a very suitable method. The characterization of important influence factors is central for informative results of an analysis as they define the nature and intensity of impacts of a technology's environment. This paper aims at specifying a classification of influence factors for new technology scenario analysis by including major insights from diffusion theory. Subsequently, an exemplary application for biopolymer technology is given.     

工业VOCs经济手段和工程技术减排对比性分析

挥发性有机物(VOCs)污染已经同二氧化硫、氮氧化物和颗粒物等成为目前我国重点城市群的主要大气污染物.工业领域是挥发性有机物的主要排放部门,工程技术减排是重要的控制措施之一."十二五"期间,我国计划投资400亿元建设重点行业挥发性有机物污染治理项目,年减排量计划为60.5万t·a-1.技术减排被提到了一个新的高度,表明了国家对工程技术减排的重视.本研究采用宏观经济学可计算的一般均衡模型,对工程技术减排与经济手段(环境税)进行政策模拟,进行比对性分析,探讨了两种减排方法的优劣.研究认为,当前经济条件下,相同减排量下,考虑宏观经济损失,环境税减排的成本远高于技术减排.结合目前我国实际情况,为鼓励工程技术减排,建议政府给予企业约为7 500元·t-1的财政补贴.     

An environmental assessment method for cleaner production technologies

An environmental assessment method for cleaner production technologies enabling quantitative analysis of environmental impact is presented.The proposed method is based on material and energy flows and uses a set of profile indices, including raw material, energy, waste, product and packaging profiles that describe all material and energy flows related to the technology under investigation. The indices are used as a basis for determining an integrated index for overall environmental assessment of cleaner production technologies.The presented method can be employed to evaluate environmental nuisance of implemented, modernised and modified technological processes and products as well to perform comparative analyses of alternative technologies.     

汽车尾气有害物质治理技术

汽车工业的发展,给人们工作、生活带来极大的便利,同时汽车排放的尾气也给大气环境和人体造成了严重的污染和伤害。人们环保意识不断增强,迫需加强汽车尾气的治理。文章对电控燃油喷射系统,电控点火系统,废气再循环技术,分层燃烧技术,可变气门正时系统,多气门技术等发动机净化技术进行了研究和分析,介绍了汽车尾气净化等离子体处理、纳米催化、汽车磁化净化等尾气净化新技术,对汽车尾气净化技术的应用与实践具有一定借鉴作用。     

碳税对我国宏观经济及可再生能源发电技术的影响——基于电力部门细分的CGE模型

本文基于电力行业上市公司年报数据将传统CGE模型中的电力部门细分为7个发电部门,其中包含水电、风电、光伏和生物质电4个可再生能源发电部门.首先基于传统CGE模型和电力部门细分的CGE模型比较了我国引入可再生能源发电技术前后征收碳税对宏观经济的影响,然后分析了单一碳税政策、碳税与可再生能源发电补贴复合政策对可再生能源发电技术发展的影响.研究发现：引入可再生能源发电技术后,征收碳税对宏观经济的负面影响相比没有引入而言将有所降低;征收碳税将促进可再生能源发电技术的发展;在征收碳税的同时如果对特定可再生能源发电技术给予补贴,可能会对未受到补贴且不具备成本比较优势的可再生能源发电技术产生“挤出效应”.     

Climate change and agricultural technology adoption: the case of drought tolerant maize in rural Nigeria

Climate change is a major problem undermining agricultural production in Africa. Consequently, efforts are being made to provide farmers with adaptation technologies, but little empirical research exists on the determinants of adopting such technologies. This article addresses this research gap, using the case of drought tolerant maize (DTM) technology in Nigeria. With survey data from 200 farm households and econometric techniques, we explore the determinants of whether to invest and how much to invest in adaptation technology by smallholder farmers. Results from the study indicate that among the key determinants of adoption are access to the technology, complementary inputs, extension services, and climate change information. We also show that off-farm income and wealth status of a household play a significant role in adoption, implying capital constraints; hence, it can be difficult for resource-poor farmers to adopt the technology. Moreover, the farmers identified cost of the technology and complementary inputs, particularly fertilizer as major constraints to adoption. We conclude that while the DTM technology is suitable and important in helping smallholder maize farmers to continue to produce under a changing climate, more support is needed for them to invest in the technology and overcome adoption constraints. Necessary interventions include improving access to information about climate change and the available adaptation technology, timely access to the technology and complementary inputs, and improving access to credit, particularly for the resource-poor farm households.