Toward sustainable use of natural resources: Nexus between resource rents,affluence, energy intensity and carbon emissions in developing and transition economies

Sustainable use of natural resources would entail ensuring that derived economic benefits today do not undermine the welfare of generations to come. On this basis, this study examines the nexus between natural resource rents and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions disaggregated into production and consumption-based (i.e., trade-adjusted) CO₂ emissions for a selected panel of 45 developing and transition economies over the period 1995–2017. The empirical model also incorporates the impacts of population, affluence, and energy intensity. The results show that affluence increases production-based CO₂ emissions by 1.407%, with the EKC's predicted inverted U-shaped curve only explaining consumption-based CO₂ emissions. Economic reliance on natural resource rents and energy intensification contribute 0.022% and 0.766%, respectively, to CO₂ emissions embedded in territorial production inventories and 0.035% and 0.583%, respectively, to CO₂ emissions embedded in consumption inventories. The bootstrap non-causality test shows that historical data on each variable has significant predictive power for future CO₂ emissions from both sources. The historical information about natural resource rents has significant predictive power over the future levels of affluence and energy intensity. Clearly, the results show that the environmental impact of natural resource rents is stronger when CO₂ emissions are adjusted for trade and varies among the countries, with Bangladesh, Guinea, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe among the most affected countries. Overall, this study provides motivation for policies to keep the use of natural resources within sustainable limits.     

How does eliminating mercury from artisanal and small-scale gold mining lead to achieving sustainable development goals?

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the principal anthropogenic activity that globally contributes to overloading our environment with mercury. Although the Minamata Convention, led by the United Nations, is a crucial instrument to eliminate its use progressively, novel approaches to accelerate this difficult transition are welcome. This article proposes a framework for policy-making or improvement, fostering the enforcement of mercury elimination through the lens of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), focusing on the excluded artisanal and small-scale gold miners and their dependents. We move forward with a literature review of the Artisanal and Small Mining topic, taking each SDG as a unit of analysis. Understanding the problem as a puzzle of four sets of pieces, namely: (1) social, (2) environmental, (3) economic, and (4) institutional, the paper offers potential opportunities for the decision-makers and practitioners to accelerate the substitution of this heavy metal and develop sustainable futures for the ASGM communities. We conclude by proposing a pragmatic framework that synthesizes the means, actions, and ends to accelerate a sustainable transition.     

Spatial analysis of resources and environmental carrying capacity in Iran

Urbanization and mass movement of the population from rural areas and small cities to megacities have led to environmental, economic, and social problems in Iran. In dealing with these challenges, assessing resource and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) is considered an effective method to leverage space and capital to achieve sustainable development. This study aimed to rank the provincial RECC in Iran. Toward this purpose, environmental indices were generated from remotely sensed and statistical census data. Then, the provinces were scored in terms of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacities, and RECC using the mean variance analysis method. Results demonstrated that in most areas, there is no relationship between economic and infrastructural capacities and development. Statistically, a correlation coefficient of −0.53 between economic and environmental carrying capacities indicated excessive use of environmental capacities. Moreover, the spatial distribution pattern of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacity was entirely heterogeneous between the provinces; there was a northeast–southwest pattern in terms of infrastructural capacity and an economic pattern from north to south. The distribution pattern of RECC is most consistent with the environmental capacity, pointing at the high weight of the indicators of the RECC model. In conclusion, this research offers a new vision for policymakers and provides a theoretical and applicable framework for implementing sustainable strategies in land-use planning. It is recommended that the RECC concept and tools can be used not only for planning but also for measuring the efficiency of spatial development programs and establishing land balances in the region.     

国家环境经济政策进展评估报告2022

本年度报告采取实地调研法和政策分析法,针对2022年我国环境经济政策实践开展系统评估,总体认为2022年环境经济政策体系建设不断完善,环境经济政策改革与创新工作取得积极进展,有力推动了高质量发展动力转换、绿色发展结构转型,在生态文明与美丽中国建设中发挥了重要作用。未来需要进一步优化环境经济政策,建立健全一套更加科学合理、公平长效、激发活力的环境经济政策体系,充分支撑环境质量改善与高质量发展。     

碳交易背景下中国华北地区碳代谢格局变化

碳排放权交易市场作为推进美丽中国建设、实现降碳减污绿色发展的重要手段,成为当前研究的热点问题.为探究碳交易背景下华北地区试点区域及非试点区域碳代谢过程,以城市碳代谢理论为依据,采取投入产出分析和生态网络分析相结合的研究方法.结果表明,北京和天津作为早期交易试点区域,区域从2012年后呈现直接碳排放量稳步下降、隐含碳排放量缓慢增加趋势.试点产业部门直接排放量与隐含排放量变化趋势一致,其中煤炭开采和洗选业、石油和天然气开采业和非金属矿物制品业减排效应明显,而排放量较高的电力、热力的生产和供应业表现为增加趋势.部门隐含碳排放强度与隐含碳排放量变化趋势相似证实部门隐含增加值在交易过程中并未增加.高碳排放部门的隐含碳排放量主要由长度小于6的代谢路径所贡献,因此应重点关注部门间较短路径传递的商品或服务的“清洁化”.在交易政策实施以前,区域产业部门间跨区域贸易较少,表现为低碳排放产品交换;2012年以后,随着京津冀城市群协同发展以及华北地区不断构筑的区域经济发展新格局,促使区域间跨区域和跨部门贸易增加.以碳排放权交易制度为背景,构建识别系统内关键参与者及关键路径的方法体系,可为区域性政策实施及可持续发展提供科学的发展建议.     

The Essence of a Recycling Economy:Circular Utilization of Resources

By analyzing the relationship between a recycling economy and sustainable development theory, this article puts forward the basic concept of a recycling economy as a dynamic economic operational model, and explains the four basic characteristics. It is stressed that the essential element of a recycling economy is the use of resources circularly. In the end, this article analyzes the phenomena of utilizing the recycling economy concept incorrectly, and sets forth a number of problems that should be noted during the process of developing a recycling economy in China.     

基于多行业DSGE模型的中国碳减排政策效应

碳达峰和碳中和目标的提出,标志着中国低碳减排进入新的阶段,从国家层面的宏观政策包括各个行业的行业政策都在推行各种低碳减排政策,从行业异质性视角动态分析碳减排政策的效应具有重要的学术和实践意义。为此,构建一个包含环境外部性和碳减排政策的多行业动态随机一般均衡模型,研究许可证交易和碳税两种政策情景下,行业技术冲击、税收政策和减排政策调整冲击对宏观经济、环境和行业排放的动态效应。模拟发现:许可证交易政策情景下,行业技术冲击具有明显的结构性效应,覆盖行业企业减排率上升,排放下降,而未覆盖行业排放随产出上升而上升,而在碳税政策情景下,这种差异并不明显。政府采用盯住总排放波动的碳减排政策能够有效地减少冲击带来的福利损失,提高对维持排放水平的关注程度能够减少相应的福利损失。建议政府有效地权衡经济增长和改善环境二者之间的关系,在不造成大的负面经济影响的前提下,加大减排政策力度,推广和扩大碳交易试点范围,尽快在全国建立统一的碳市场。制定碳减排政策时,考虑碳减排政策收入的返还机制,配以减税的财政政策以刺激经济,缓和减排政策的负面影响。政府应根据排放水平顺周期地动态调整碳减排政策的强度,适当提高对维持排放水平的关注程度。     

塔城地区的干旱因素探讨

通过对塔城地区自然情况及水利设施建设方面的介绍及分析，总结了影响干旱的一些因素，并提出了相应的对策和建议，以减缓塔城地区的干旱问题。