The design of green supply chains under carbon policies: A literature review of quantitative models

Carbon footprinting of products and services is getting increasing attention due to the growing emphasis on carbon related policies in many countries. As a result, many enterprises are focusing on the design of green supply chains (GSCs) with research on supply chains (SCs) focused not only on cost efficiency, but also on its environmental consequences. The review presented in this paper focuses on the implications of carbon policies on SCs. The concept of content analysis is used to retrieve and analyze the information regarding drivers (carbon policies), actors (for example, manufacturers and retailers), methodologies (mathematical modeling techniques), decision-making contexts (such as, facility location and order quantity), and emission reduction opportunities. The review shows a lack of emissions analysis of SCs that face carbon policies in different countries. The research also focuses on the design of carbon policies for emissions reduction in different operating situations. Some possible research directions are also discussed at the end of this review.A NPRP award NPRP No.5-1284-5-198 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of The Qatar Foundation).Scopu

Research on supply chain optimization considering consumer subsidy mechanism in the context of carbon neutrality

With the proposal of China’s “carbon peak, carbon neutral” strategy, the increasing awareness of low carbon production among consumers, and the government’s introduction of carbon trading mechanism and low carbon consumption subsidy policies, enterprises are facing good opportunities for development. However, how the government can reasonably formulate low carbon policies and how enterprises can implement optimal low-carbon production decisions are still key issues in China’s low-carbon transition development. In this context, this paper is based on the carbon trading mechanism and carbon consumption subsidies. In this context, based on the car-bon trading mechanism, this paper focuses on green production and green consumption, considers the impact of low-carbon consumer preferences and government subsidies on enterprises’ low-carbon production decisions, and uses the optimal theory to study the optimal pricing strategy and the optimal carbon reduction strategy. The study shows that the increase in carbon price has a positive effect on the increase in enterprise profit; the increase of carbon emission has a negative effect on the increase of enterprise profit and the high carbon price will intensify this effect. In addition, changing the intensity of government subsidies to consumers will lead to the change of enterprise carbon emission strategy. The study of this paper provides a certain reference for the government to reasonably formulate carbon trading prices and consumer low-carbon subsidies. In addition, considering consumer low-carbon preferences is also conducive to promoting green production practices of enterprises, thus promoting the realization of the carbon neutral strategy

The global dimension of water governance: why the river basin approach is no longer sufficient and why cooperative action at global level is needed

When water problems extend beyond the borders of local communities, the river basin is generally seen as the most appropriate unit for analysis, planning, and institutional arrangements. In this paper it is argued that addressing water problems at the river basin level is not always sufficient. Many of today’s seemingly local water issues carry a (sub)continental or even global dimension, which urges for a governance approach that comprises institutional arrangements at a level beyond that of the river basin. This paper examines a number of arguments for the thesis that good water governance requires a global approach complementary to the river basin approach. Subsequently, it identifies four major issues to be addressed at global scale: Efficiency, equity, sustainability and security of water supply in a globalised world. Finally, the paper raises the question of what kind of institutional arrangements could be developed to cope with the global dimension of water issues. A few possible directions are explored, ranging from an international protocol on full-cost water pricing and a water label for water-intensive products to the implementation of water footprint quotas and the water-neutral concept

Border Tax Adjustments: A feasible way to address nonparticipation in Emission Trading

CO2 emission certificates internalise effects of fossil fuel consumption on global climate and sea levels. If they are only implemented in some countries, then their effectiveness is limited; Consumption, production and investment decisions do not reach the optimal allocation, production with inefficient technologies in non-participating countries can even be increased. Furthermore industry lobbying might result in limited application of CO2 emission certificates or less ambitious reduction targets. Border tax adjustment at the level of additional costs incurred for procurement of CO2 emission permits during production of processed materials using best available technology limits the distortions. We show that it can be compatible with WTO constraints. Crucial features of a practicable implementation are simplicity achieved by a focus on the CO2 emissions caused by processed materials and a separate treatment of electric energy input to take account of regionally varying fuel mixes

Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives and Decarbonization in the European Food Supply Chain

The European Green Deal is a political milestone aiming to promote a carbon-neutral economy in the European Union. Decarbonizing the complex food sector requires the unified interaction among effective climate policies, economic instruments,and initiatives involving multiple stakeholders. Despite increasing efforts to highlight the importance of innovations and finance to achieve sustainable food supply chains (FSC), comprehensive information about related opportunities and barriers to mitigating emissions in the food sector is still under-explored. To cover this gap, this paper applies an existing industrial policy framework under the lens of the EU FSC to identify potential strategies that should help achieve the needed financial means and innovation actions, as well as to gauge political alignment across FSC stages. Methodologically, the pillars proposed in the framework are linked to multi-stakeholders' initiatives engaged in achieving net-zero emissions. The paper highlights three main implications of the identified interlinkages. First, political directionality related to the food sector should be more comprehensively tailored to account for the specificities of all stages of the FSC. Second, research and development projects shall likewise cover all stages,instead of emphasizing only food production and agricultural systems. Finally, multiple stakeholders are crucial as promoters of technology and innovation towards a green economy. Nevertheless, initiatives should be integrated into political discussions in order to promote civil awareness, sustainable food and services demand, aligned to political guidelines

Managing Transformation under Uncertainty

The paper in a nutshell: In this paper, we present the normative concept of green industrial policy, which we define as encompassing any policy measure aimed at aligning the structure of a country’s economy with the needs of sustainable development within established planetary boundaries. We elaborate on why we need green industrial policy, how it differs from conventional industrial policy, why it is faced with significantly bigger challenges, and how these can be met. What and how we produce and consume is largely shaped by markets. However, markets fail to solve many of the environmental challenges we are facing. Therefore, we need governments to intervene, thus reclaiming the primacy of public policy in setting and implementing societal objectives. While safeguarding the sustainability of human life on our planet makes green industrial policy a highly normative undertaking, the economic case for green industrial policy is strong as well – the success stories of such ‘green’ frontrunners as Germany and Denmark demonstrate the competitiveness potential of the new technologies. However, as shown by decades of discussion on industrial policy, government intervention almost invariably brings about risks of political capture and government failure. Green industrial policy is thus not only governed by ethical norms, but also by politics. The risks of failure are magnified by the urgency and scale of today’s global environmental challenges, requiring particularly bold, comprehensive and well-orchestrated government intervention under high uncertainty. By highlighting lessons learned from practical cases of both success and failure, we show how these risks can be, and have been, managed. In particular, we submit that a broad- based social vision and contract need to be forged – supported by change coalitions and coupled with policy process safeguards, openness to policy learning, and an alignment of green industrial policies with market mechanisms

Sustaining dairy

Dairy in Europe has undergone many changes in the last few years—the abolition of milk production quotas being a fundamental one. This study explores these changes in relation to the sustained social and environmental viability of the sector and how dairy processors' sustainability programs are a part of that. Regime change as outlined in transition theory enhanced through a sociological approach on actors informed this research. More specifically, the notion of obligatory passage points was used to explore the mechanisms through which dominant actors make certain actions mandatory and reify their status as indispensable. The thesis consists of three case studies: the dairy sectors in the Netherlands, Ireland and the United Kingdom. The cases trace the evolution of all sectors since the post-war era, outlining the dominant logic that has guided its development. The sustainability programs of three dairy processors—located in each of the case countries—are also part of the analysis. Data was collected through document analysis and semi-structured interviews. The analysis shows that the post-war logic based on the increase of scale and intensification of dairying has continued to shape the development of the sector through today. While the visible impacts of intensive dairy have led to adaptations to the dominant rules and practices, these changes have not been fundamental in nature. The analysis of dairy processors and their sustainability programs revealed that these programs can be an additional tool for compliance to legal standards and the alleviation of pressing societal concerns. However, processors address social and environmentally relevant dairy-related challenges when an effective link to profit can be established. These programs have been unable to ensure that the dairy sector operates within established environmental limits and societal expectations, while providing a stable livelihood for farmers. This research contributes to the understanding of sustainability (agri-food) transitions by identifying the mechanisms through which the regime adapts to the shifting environment and dominant actors strive for their own continuity. It also adds to the debate about the role that incumbent actors can have in sustainability transitions—their involvement is important but they are unable to guide such processes. This study advances the empirical ground in sustainability transition studies by focusing on systems in which change is less likely to be technologically driven and where social change plays a larger role. Finally, this thesis connects past development, current challenges, and present engagement in a discussion about the future development of the dairy sector; this adds to the further conceptualization of the complexity and co-evolutionary nature of sustainability transitions.</p

Renewable energy policies in Portugal

Policies chosen to promote renewables can vary significantly and determine different levels of deployment, efficiency and technological innovation. Instruments in this sector have been mostly directed towards electricity generation and are usually divided into two main types: feed-in tariffs and quota obligations. The former is more frequent in the European Union and is associated with higher levels of deployment, as well as higher policy costs. However, support schemes can be adjusted in order to minimize their shortcomings. Tariffs can be reduced progressively as deployment targets are reached and quota obligation schemes can be designed to recognize different technological development stages. Policies in Portugal have initially been based on investment grants to promote the switch from fuel oil, an attempt to reduce energy dependence and keep the industrial sector competitive after the two oil shocks of the 70s. This approach continued after the accession to the European Union and feed-in tariffs per se were only introduced in 1999. However, it would only be with the introduction of technology premiums in the pricing mechanism in 2001 that significant renewable deployment was to be seen. This thesis describes the policy evolution and includes a detailed analysis of the bioenergy sector, where the combined heat and power feed-in tariff has successfully triggered new power capacity promoted mostly by industrial companies in the wood sector, particularly pulp and paper. Incentives for heat production have been scarce but the sector has fought back its troubles by making good use of strong support policies in other Member States.As políticas para a promoção de energias renováveis podem variar significativamente e determinar diferentes níveis de desenvolvimento, eficiência e inovação tecnológica. Os instrumentos neste sector têm sido maioritariamente direccionados para a produção de electricidade e são geralmente divididos em dois tipos principais: tarifas de aquisição e quotas. O primeiro é mais frequente na União Europeia e associado a níveis mais elevados de desenvolvimento, apesar de o serem também os custos de política. Os esquemas de apoio podem ser ajustados por forma a minimizar as suas desvantagens. As tarifas podem ser progressivamente reduzidas à medida que as metas de desenvolvimento são atingidas e os esquemas baseados em quotas podem ser desenhados para acomodar os diferentes estádios de desenvolvimento tecnológico. As políticas em Portugal estiveram inicialmente suportadas em ajudas ao investimento para promover a substituição de fuelóleo, uma tentativa de reduzir a dependência energética e manter o sector industrial competitivo depois dos choques petrolíferos da década de 70. Esta abordagem prosseguiu após a entrada na União Europeia e as tarifas de aquisição per se foram apenas introduzidas em 1999. Contudo, apenas com a introdução de um prémio tecnológico no mecanismo de preço em 2001 foi possível registar um desenvolvimento significativo das renováveis. No sector da bioenergia, a tarifa para a cogeração conseguiu activar com sucesso a construção de nova capacidade, promovida principalmente pela indústria do sector da madeira, especialmente da pasta e papel. Os incentivos para a produção de calor têm sido reduzidos mas o sector soube aproveitar o forte apoio às renováveis noutros Estados-membros

Scenario analysis report with policy recommendations: An assessment of sustainability, resilience, efficiency and fairness and effective chain relationships in VALUMICS case studies : Deliverable 8.4

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, to view a copy of the license, see: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The final version of this report is available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6534011The functioning of food value chains entails a complex organisation from farm to fork which is characterised by various governance forms and externalities which have shaped the overall food system. VALUMICS food value chain case studies: wheat to bread, dairy cows to milk, beef cattle to steak, farmed salmon to fillets and tomato to processed tomato were selected to enable explorative and empirical analysis to better understand the functioning of the food system and, to identify the main challenges that need to be addressed to improve sustainability, integrity, resilience, and fairness of European food chains. The VALUMICS system analysis was executed through four operational phases starting with Groundwork & analysis including mapping specific attributes and impacts of food value chains and their externalities. This was followed by Case study baseline analysis, which provided input to the third phase on Modelling and exploration of future scenarios and finally Policy and synthesis of the overall work. This report is an overall synthesis of the VALUMICS results as follows: • Key findings from the VALUMICS project on the functioning of European food value chains and their impacts on more sustainable, resilient, fairer, and transparent food system are summarised through a compilation of 25 Research Findings and Policy Briefs. • By highlighting the major contributions from the research activities throughout the four phases of the VALUMICS project, this report delivers an assessment of various factors influencing sustainability, resilience, efficiency and fairness and effective chain relationships of different food value chains, and their determinants. • The synthesis of the outcome allows the identification of opportunities and challenges characterising the functioning of food supply chains, and thus, the prospects and potentials for strengthening the EU food sector