Green - Lean Practices and Reverse Logistics:Evidence from Manufacturing Industry of a Developing Economy

The past literature has seen considerable growth in lean and green concepts in the context of developed countries. However, despite the increasing interdependencies between developing and developed economies, little is known in the context of developing economies. This study investigates the impact of green and lean practices, and reverse logistics on organizational performance in the context of a developing economy. We employ a quantitative research design, where a sample of 170 responses was generated from senior managers of manufacturing firms in Pakistan – a developing economy. The analysis uncovers those green practices have a significant positive nexus with organizational performance in a developing economy like Pakistan. Further, we find that lean practices and reverse logistics serially mediate the relationship between green practices and organizational performance. We thus suggest green practices, lean practices, and reverse logistics as key levers to enhance performance and gain a competitive advantage for the firms in the developing economy like Pakistan. This is among the few studies testing serial mediation of lean practices and reverse logistics between green practices and organizational performance. The findings offer numerous contributions to both theory and practice

Reduction of nitrous oxide emission by using stearic acid combined zinc coated urea in silty clay and sandy loam soils under bare and planted conditions

Overuse of chemical fertilizers in agroecosystems leads to the increased economic burden, low crop production in terms of input and environmental pollution. Due to its improved nutrient management and degrading properties, synthetic slow release fertilizers have become a significant advancement in the fertilizer sector. In this study we evaluated the effect of slow release urea on nitrous oxide (N2O) emission, crop growth and crop nutrient contents. Measurements were carried out in two different texture soils (sandy loam and silty clay) under two different conditions (bare soil and planted). The N2O emission was measured for 15 days from bare soils and 48 days from planted soil. Plant fresh weight, dry weight, chlorophyll contents, N and Zn were measured in the end of the experiment. The results showed that N2O emission was reduced 33–39 % from coated urea as compared to conventional urea in bare soil. In planted soil, the coated urea reduced the N2O emission 29–33 %. The deep placement of urea in silty clay soil reduced the N2O emission up to 22.8 % as compared to surface placement. Plant fresh matter, dry matter, N and Zn contents were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher with coated urea as compared to conventional urea. It is concluded that the coating of urea with hydrophobic materials like stearic acid, along with Zn sources i.e. Zn fortified nano-bentonite or the ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) presents opportunities to overcome the environmental pollution and increasing the crop production and quality