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This article considers a quantity‐setting duopoly (Cournot rivalry) in which firms adopt an abatement technology as a device to improve the quality of products. Consumer preferences capture vertical product differentiation (quality) towards "green" products. This introduces a trade‐off on the production side, as firms that do not abate, in turn, do not sustain any abatement cost but the demand for their product is low. On the contrary, firms that choose to abate incur abatement costs, but the demand for their product is high. The article aims to study and understand whether this kind of preference may lead firms to strategically invest in green technology and introduces a new, private‐based (that contrasts the well‐known public‐based) mechanism through which pollution abatement can emerge as a sub‐game perfect Nash equilibrium (SPNE) of a non‐cooperative abatement decision game with product quality and complete information. The model is developed in a parsimonious way to pinpoint the main determinants of the endogenous market outcomes ranging from an anti‐prisoner's dilemma in which self‐interest and mutual benefit of non‐abatement do not conflict to an anti‐prisoner's dilemma in which self‐interest and mutual benefit of abatement do not conflict, passing through to an anti‐coordination scenario. Additionally, the welfare analysis reveals the existence of a win‐win solution from a societal perspective. The article shows that the results obtained in the Cournot setting also hold considering a Bertrand duopoly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fighting climate change has become a major task worldwide. One of the key energy sectors to emit greenhouse gases is transportation. Therefore, long term strategies all over the world have been set up to reduce on-road combustion emissions. In this context, the road freight sector faces significant challenges in decarbonization, driven by its limited availability of low-emission fuels and commercialized zero-emission vehicles compared with its high energy demand. In this work, we develop the Mobility and Energy Transportation Analysis (META) Model, a python-based optimization model to quantify the impact of transportation projected policies on freight transport by projecting conventional and alternative fuel technologies market acceptance as well as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Along with introducing e-fuels as an alternative refueling option for conventional vehicles, META investigates the market opportunities of Mobile Carbon Capture (MCC) until 2050. To accurately assess this technology, a techno-economic analysis is essential to compare MCC abatement cost to alternative decarbonization technologies such as electric trucks. The novelty of this work comes from the detailed cost categories taken into consideration in the analysis, including intangible costs associated with heavy-duty technologies, such as recharging/refueling time, cargo capacity limitations, and consumer acceptance towards emerging technologies across different regions. Based on the study results, the competitive total cost of ownership (TCO) and marginal abatement cost (MAC) values of MCC make it an economically promising alternative option to decarbonize the freight transport sector. Both in the KSA and EU, MCC options could reach greater than 50% market shares of all ICE vehicle sales, equivalent to a combined 35% of all new sales shares by 2035. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Establishing a reasonable cost-sharing and compensation mechanism for air pollution control is a prerequisite for realizing inter-regional cooperative treatment. Taking inter-provincial sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions in China from 2005 to 2019 as the research object, this paper proposes a data-driven approach to establish a cost-sharing index system of regional SO2 treatment in four dimensions and construct a cost-sharing and compensation scheme using the entropy-TOPSIS method. The results revealed that there are significant spatial and temporal differences in the treatment cost of SO2 emission, and the total SO2 treatment costs at the national level increased first and then decreased during the study period, meanwhile, the regional SO2 treatment costs are much higher in the less economically developed regions such as the central and western regions than in economically developed eastern coastal regions. The design of the cost-sharing and compensation mechanism of SO2 treatment should consider the regional differences in abatement capacity, abatement potential, abatement responsibility, and development demands. The economically developed regions should share higher treatment costs according to their historical cumulative abatement responsibilities, and provide economic compensation and technical support to the less economically developed regions. Specifically, the marginal abatement cost in the more economically developed eastern region is much higher than that in the less economically developed central and western areas due to their large abatement responsibility and strong reduction capacity but insufficient abatement potential, so the eastern regions can transfer part of their abatement responsibility to the central and western regions using economic compensation. Reasonable cost sharing and horizontal compensation can help promote regional cooperation and synergistic management in air pollution abatement. Finally, corresponding policy recommendations are given to provide a decision basis for cross-regional cooperation in air pollution control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The green and low carbon transition and development of the electricity industry is the most crucial task in realizing the "dual-carbon target", and it is urgent to explore the incentive and subsidy mechanism to promote green electricity consumption and the cost-sharing strategy of carbon reduction, to alleviate the pressure of carbon abatement cost of each subject of the electricity supply chain. Against this background, this paper takes into account the low-carbon subsidies provided by the government and the incentive subsidies for users, and studies the optimal decision-making of each subject in the electricity supply chain, so that each of them can obtain the optimal profit and achieve carbon emission reduction at the same time. Firstly, taking into account the direct power purchase mode of large users and the electricity-selling companies emerging after the reform of the power sales side, we have established a cooperative mechanism for sharing the cost of carbon emission reduction in the electricity supply chain and clarified the relationship between the supply and demand of electricity among the main parties. Subsequently, considering government low-carbon subsidies and user incentive subsidies, the optimal decision-making model is established under two scenarios of decentralized and centralized cooperative games in the supply chain, respectively, with the objective of maximizing profits and carbon reduction rates. Solving for the optimal proportion of carbon abatement costs shared by each participant in the electricity supply chain in achieving game equilibrium. Finally, we analyze the role of the government's low-carbon subsidies, users' incentive subsidies, and other factors on the profit and carbon reduction effect of the electricity industry through the example analysis and further analyze the impact of carbon abatement cost-sharing measures to provide recommendations for the electricity industry to realize low-carbon abatement and make decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) form a substantial part of cost-efficient climate change mitigation options. However, public financial flows towards NbS have been limited. Among the factors impeding investments in NbS are challenges in reliable remote project identification and comparison. In this article, we demonstrate a technological solution to these challenges. Using cloud-based satellite data processing and the proliferation of open geospatial data, we developed a methodology to map NbS suitability based on a set of biophysical, pedological, hydrological and climatological criteria. To provide a proof of concept, we identify potential project areas for eight types of NbS in Rwanda and Lesotho. Building on these spatially-explicit NbS suitability data layers (accessible at ), we develop marginal abatement cost curves for projects in Rwanda and Lesotho. We thus provide a proof of concept for remote identification and project comparison. These technological developments can help investors, such as multilateral donors or governments, alleviate additionality concerns that are implied by local project selection. Key Policy Insights: Investment in climate change mitigation through Nature-based Solutions (NbS) is limited, in spite of the large, cost-efficient potential for achieving national and global goals. Remote project identification and comparison can help alleviate some of the impediments to international investment in NbS. Such remote identification and comparison of NbS projects is now possible because of breakthroughs in cloud-based satellite data processing technologies and increased availability of geospatial data. We present a proof of concept, establishing marginal abatement cost curves for climate change mitigation through NbS in Rwanda and Lesotho. Coupled with the institutional improvements necessary to create a reliable intergovernmental carbon credit market, these technological developments have the potential to boost international investment in NbS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Green Deal and similar strategies seek to improve sustainability of the agricultural sector via public support programmes. It is important to assess the costs of sustainable energy use in agriculture by exploiting the shadow price approach. However, the earlier literature often ignored the fact that shadow price analysis may be sensitive to the assumed direction of optimization. This paper seeks to disentangle the major patterns in energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emission performance in the selected European Union countries by assuming different optimization directions. The country-level data are used to construct the environmental production technology by means of the data envelopment analysis. The different directional output distance functions (aggregate, unit and radial) for the weak disposability data envelopment analysis models are used to quantify the shadow prices of the energy-relevant GHG emission and construct the marginal abatement cost curves. The results indicate spatial and temporal variation in the environmental performance that can be addressed by adjusting the support programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is key to achieve overall climate policy goals. Effective and efficient policy instruments are needed to incentivize farmers' adoption of on‐farm climate change mitigation practices. We compare action‐ and results‐based policy designs for GHG reduction in agriculture and account for farmers' heterogeneous behavioral characteristics such as individual farming preferences, reluctance to change and social interactions. An agent‐based bio‐economic modeling approach is used to simulate total GHG reduction, overall governmental spending and farm‐level marginal abatement cost of Swiss dairy and beef cattle farms under both action‐ and results‐based policy designs. We find that total governmental spending associated with the compared policy designs depends on the cost and benefits of the considered measures as well as behavioral characteristics of farmers. More precisely, if farmers are reluctant to change, additional incentives are needed to increase adoption of a win‐win measure. In such a case, targeting the payment on the cost of that particular measure (action‐based design) instead of paying a uniform amount for abated emissions (results‐based design) can lower governmental spending for agricultural climate change mitigation. Farm‐level marginal cost of reducing GHG emissions are lower with results‐based payments independent of the cost of measures. Moreover, we find that farmers' individual preferences and reluctance to change substantially lower the adoption of mitigation measures and hence overall GHG reduction potential of farms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When ecology thrives, civilization thrives, and when ecology declines, civilization declines. Based on panel data from 30 provinces in China from 2000 to 2021, this study used marginal abatement costs to estimate the co-benefits of pollution reduction and carbon reduction. Two-way fixed effect and two-stage intermediary effect models were used to evaluate the impact of digital technology on co-benefits and its indirect channels. The results indicated that China's total carbon emissions maintained a steady growth trend, while air pollution showed a fluctuating declining trend. Reaching peak carbon neutrality calls for more innovative solutions. Under joint emission reduction efforts, the study revealed marginal abatement cost savings of 535.8 million yuan/million tons and 6216.5 million yuan/μg/m3 for carbon reduction and pollution reduction, respectively. Most importantly, the study confirmed that joint emission reduction programs can reduce environmental governance costs more than individual emission reductions can, and the co-benefits increased from 37.983 to 44.757. The co-benefits generally showed a trend of fluctuation and increases and had the characteristics of phased transformation. Intragroup differences and cross-overlapping between regions made regional differences in co-benefits obvious. The subversive, permeable, and integrated features of digital technology have resulted in the all-around transformation of the economy and society, and the new technology–economy paradigm has significantly improved co-benefits. The conclusion remains valid after robustness testing and controlling for endogeneity problems. The results of the mechanism analysis suggest that digital technology can indirectly improve synergies through the intermediary channels of fostering green technology innovation, reducing energy consumption intensity and improving the energy structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The forestry carbon offset policy has been implemented for a short time, and in order to study its optimization mechanism and pressure-sharing emission reduction effect, this paper applies the directional distance function to calculate the marginal abatement cost of each province/city based on the panel data of 30 provinces/cities in China from 2000 to 2020. Then, we utilize the synthetic control method to analyze the forestry carbon offset policy by taking Beijing, Guangdong, and Fujian as a natural experiment. Finally, placebo tests and differences-in-differences tests were used to verify the experiment's effectiveness. The study has the following results. (1) The forestry carbon offset policy is a Pareto improvement after integrating multiple benefits. The proportion of FCS offset should be increased, and government subsidies should be reduced when carbon quotas are tightened, followed by the gradual inclusion of more industries and enterprises in the scope of mandatory emission reductions. (2) The impact of forestry carbon offset policy on sharing the abatement pressure has regional heterogeneity, which is affected mainly by geographical location, economic level, and industrial structure. It can be obtained that the forestry carbon offset policy has shared the pressure for emission reductions in Guangdong and Fujian. This study provides a theoretical basis for promoting forestry carbon offset policies and their coupling with other carbon-reduction policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities, which are the primary economic engine and emission source in China, accounted for 70% of the country's total energy-related CO2 emissions in 2010. The development of low-carbon cities has become the first priority of policymakers. Low-carbon cities enhance competition in the long run but also inevitably impose costs in the short term. To investigate the associated abatement costs of CO2 toward low-carbon cities, we apply the directional distance function on panel data covering 104 Chinese prefecture-level and above cities from 2001 to 2014. Our results show that, on average, the cost to control one ton of CO2 is 1070 CNY, or equivalent to 129 US $. This cost shows great individual heterogeneity and time variation; the year 2011 witnesses a significant reversal of the marginal abatement cost of CO2. It is because China begins implementing a mandatory CO2 intensity reduction target for the 12th Five-Year Plan (FYP). We establish a four-quadrant matrix framework to identify low-carbon cities and track the low-carbon transition path based on emission indicators (total emissions, per capita emissions, and emission intensity) and abatement cost pairs. Among the four types of emission-cost patterns, more cities are scattered in the "low emission-level and high abatement-cost" quadrant, and eight cities are clarified as low-carbon cities in 2014. In terms of per capita emissions and abatement costs, the "high-per-capita-emission and low-abatement-cost" club include five cities in 2001, while this number rises to seven members in 2014. Most cities are also located in the "low-emission-intensity and low-abatement-cost" zone when the relationship between CO2 intensity and abatement cost is considered. Our results call for policymakers' attention to hot spots and emission-based, per capita emission-based, or intensity-based city-level decarbonizing policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: New regulations and market conditions in Germany affect the profitability of biomethane upgrading as a repowering option for existing biogas plants following on-site CHP utilization. These conditions present trade-off challenges between higher sustainability requirements, maintaining production capacity and new revenue opportunities. Optimization methods, such as linear programming (LP), are essential for determining the ideal substrate mixture and profitable solutions amidst multiple market conditions, plant-specific process constraints, and substrate properties. Methods: We updated a substrate mixture optimization model within an assessment framework for the repowering of existing biogas plants (BGPs), which focuses on the operator's perspective. By integrating multiple German biomethane markets for various BGPs, we assessed changes in the substrate mixture, GHG emissions, contribution margins, and constraint parameters to derive conclusions for operators and future framework design. Results: Integrating market revenues and constraints can increase contribution margins by 12–55%. Additional gains can be achieved by considering multiple markets simultaneously but limited to a few BGPs. The plant-specific LP solution space and used benchmark market are decisive. The former limits the potential of high substrate-specific contribution margins, which has a significantly higher impact than the relation between plant-specific characteristics and process constraints. The advanced fuel market is currently the lead market for biomethane, incentivizing GHG-emission extensive substrates, decreasing gas production and GHG emissions but increasing levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and partially CO2 abatement costs. Conclusions: The key to improve profitability and to supply an increasing biomethane demand while fulfilling new requirements is a large LP solution space. Increasing market options, substrate availability, and digestion system capacity achieve this on the operator's side. Policy makers could reduce normative requirements such as the maize cap or double counting of advanced fuels and favor high but uniform GHG requirements. Operators can prepare robustly for the future substrate mixture by adding digester volume and pre-treatment tech, ensuring long-term and diverse substrate availability, and contracts with flexible components. Although current market conditions can improve specific GHG emissions, they do not necessarily increase manure usage when other options, such as straw, are viable. Other regulatory support systems will be required to do so. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The identification of low-sensitive accessions to aphid species has become an important subject of research and their use may increase plant production and reduce environmental pollution and control costs. Therefore, the present study aimed to present faba bean accessions that were less preferred by Aphis fabae Scopoli (Hemiptera, Aphididae) and to assess the qualitative plant changes affected by aphids. The field study was carried out at the Institute of Forage Crops (Pleven) from 2016 to 2018 with 12 Vicia faba L. accessions, and aphid infestation was assessed by recording the aphid number per plant at the pod formation stage. It was found the faba bean accession Fb 3270, followed by BGE 029055 had the lowest density of black bean aphids and were defined as very low sensitivity. The trend was similar for medium-sensitive BGE 002106. The Fb 3270, BGE 002106 and BGE 029055 accessions had significantly lower nitrogen concentration and plastid pigments, while crude fibre content was considerably higher. Aphis fabae infestation significantly changed the chemical content of plants leading to a reduction of the nitrogen, crude fibre, and plastid pigments in response to aphid injury. The reduction in nitrogen (6.9 and 8.6%) and fibre content (8.0 and 8.5%), as well as plastid pigments (9.7 and 13.1%), was the least pronounced in very low sensitive accessions (Fb 3270 and BGE 029055, respectively). Accessions having a low aphid preference and minor quality changes can be included in future breeding programmes to improve resistance to A. fabae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Yangtze River Delta is advancing efforts to synergize the reduction of pollution and carbon emissions, yet there is scarce literature quantitatively assessing its potential for such synergy. This study utilized the Data Envelopment Analysis method to calculate the marginal abatement costs of PM2.5 and CO2 from a total factor perspective for the Yangtze River Delta. By comparing the cost changes between independent reduction and synergistic reduction, the potential for pollution and carbon reduction synergy was estimated at the regional, provincial, and municipal levels. The study also simulated the changes in synergistic effects under different development scenarios. The findings were as follows: ① From 2011 to 2021, compared to independent reduction, the marginal costs for both pollution reduction and carbon emission reduction in the Yangtze River Delta significantly decreased in the synergistic reduction scenario, with marginal abatement costs of pollution reduction reduced by 35.28% and those of carbon emission reduction by 32.41%. ② At the provincial level, there was a clear heterogeneity among the marginal abatement costs of the three provinces and one municipality in the Yangtze River Delta, with Anhui having the lowest costs for both pollution reduction and carbon emission reduction, while Shanghai had relatively higher costs. ③ Compared to independent reduction, Anhui Province exhibited the most significant reduction in marginal abatement costs under synergistic reduction, highlighting its outstanding potential for synergizing the reduction of pollution and carbon emissions. ④ At the municipal level, prioritizing low-carbon development was the governance approach minimizing pollution reduction costs; prioritizing clean air was the strategy minimizing carbon emission reduction costs; and aiming for the maximization of synergistic effects required different cities to explore synergistic strategies for reducing pollution and carbon emissions matching their own stages of economic development, resource endowments, and environmental levels. This study, by estimating the marginal abatement costs of pollution reduction and carbon emission reduction in the Yangtze River Delta, reveals the temporal patterns and spatial characteristics of the region′s potential for synergizing the reduction of pollution and carbon emissions and provides valuable insights for scientifically advancing such efforts in the Yangtze River Delta. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large quantities of 'negative emissions' will be required to meet the 1.5°C temperature target under the Paris agreement. As nations consider more ambitious emissions reductions goals, policy makers, carbon market participants and environmental advocates need to estimate the potential scale of nature-based climate solutions (NCS), against the opportunity cost of current land use. In this study we construct a simple linear regression model of the relationship between carbon abatement potential and agricultural profitability, the latter a proxy for opportunity cost, to describe the total set of options for NCS on the Australian continent. Sampling these same two variables at the sites of over 800 land-based offset projects accredited since 2015 shows how the market selected from these abatement options. The model demonstrates that offset projects, under a range of crediting methodologies, were typically selected where the ratio of abatement potential to opportunity cost is maximized. These results, produced from two readily available spatial variables, provide an empirically derived framework for those with an interest in the structure of the long-run supply curve for land-based carbon abatement. This modelling approach could be applied in any geographic region where similar spatial variables for agricultural profitability and abatement potential are available. We find a strong positive correlation between the quantity of abatement potential on a land parcel and its potential opportunity cost, the latter represented by agricultural profitability. The lowest cost abatement will be obtained by policies, including market mechanisms, that optimize these two factors rather than prioritizing one over the other. Policies that direct projects to 'marginal' agricultural land may lead to a more costly emissions reduction pathway. Our modelling approach is a key input to the development of a long-run supply curve for land-based abatement, essential to any strategy that relies heavily on negative emissions. Understanding the drivers of land-based abatement projects can help to predict the land use policy impacts of a higher offset requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the power system and climate policy implications of the anticipated expansion in electricity demand from datacentres. We perform a joint optimization of Generation and Transmission Expansion Planning for the island of Ireland considering uncertainty in future datacentre growth under various climate policies. Datacentre expansion imposes significant extra costs on the power system. A renewable energy target is more costly than a technology-neutral carbon reduction policy due to the restriction to invest solely in renewable energy, and the divergence in costs increases non-linearly in electricity demand. A carbon reduction policy is more robust to uncertainties in projected demand than a renewable policy. The increased demand from datacentres, which is relatively constant, is best matched by a power supply with constant output, generally fossil-fuelled power plants, potentially in combination with carbon capture and sequestration technology, than variable supply. Datacentre demand increases power system costs by 6% under a carbon reduction policy, and by 9% to 15% under renewable energy targets. However, the abatement cost of carbon under renewable targets decreases at higher levels of demand, while the opposite is true for the abatement cost under technology-neutral targets. High renewable targets crowd out other low-carbon options, namely CCS, leading to a higher cost solution for the same reduction in emissions, although this result is sensitive to increases in fossil fuel prices. The results suggest that climate-related energy policy should focus on technology-neutral carbon reduction policies. The climate impacts of datacentres on energy demand and thus supply requirements should also feature in climate and energy policy discussions. Climate policy that focuses on renewable energy only is more expensive than a technology-neutral climate policy The costs of a renewable-only focused climate policy increase non-linearly as demand increases [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coal‐fired power plants minimize costs subject to output and emission constraints. We model the plants' choice of coal quality and emission abatement to minimize costs under these constraints, allowing for heterogeneous unobserved generation productivity and abatement efficiency. We derive and estimate the plants' cost functions to recover the production technologies. Our data set is a balanced panel of 76 U.S. coal‐fired power plants from 1995 to 2005, when the emission permit trading system was viable. We find a dramatic growth in abatement efficiency, a major goal of the Acid Rain Program. By contrast, the growth in generation productivity is positive but small. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper looks at the relationship between enterprise size and pollution abatement costs using firm-level datasets in China, where size-dependent distortions may exist in the distribution of enterprises of different sizes. We find that the pollution abatement costs decrease with enterprise size. Compared to the smallest size, the magnitudes of marginal decreases in pollution abatement costs per 1000 CNY of industrial output in the largest size are 3.29 CNY, 0.54 CNY and 2.60 CNY for gas, SO2 and dust, respectively. Moreover, we further explore the potential mechanisms for the decrease of pollution abatement costs from three perspectives: environmental protection-related investment, regulation intensity, and technological capability. Our findings suggest that the decrease in the intensity of environmental protection-related investment for large enterprises may be directly reduce the intensity of pollution abatement costs. Although large enterprises have low intensity of pollution abatement costs, this does not mean that they are subject to weaker environmental regulation. More importantly, we find that large enterprises may have more adoption of abatement technologies. For SO2 and dust, the pollutant removal efficiency of the largest enterprises is 4.92% and 1.82% higher than that of the smallest enterprises, respectively. Our results are robust to different specifications. These findings help us enact appropriate policies for enterprises based on their size, thereby improving the efficacy of pollution abatement and achieving the optimal level of pollution abatement for the entire society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need to develop a forthcoming hydrogen economy emphasises the emerging concept of 'hydrogen valleys', where hydrogen production and consumption are being developed. This study assesses the Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) and Carbon Abatement Cost (CAC) for various hydrogen end-use applications within the context of a hydrogen valley located in the southern Italy over different time horizons (Today 2023, Mid-Term 2030, Long-Term 2050). Examined applications include blending into the gas grid, reconversion into electricity for grid balancing by means of fuel cells, hydrogen refuelling stations for fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), synthetic methane production, and electro-fuel synthesis. Employing a parametric approach, the study compares LCOH and decarbonisation costs across different pathways. Results indicate current LCOH production values of 3.66–4.90 €/kg H2 , projected to decrease to 1.41–1.94 €/kg H2 by 2050. Decarbonisation cost analysis identifies blending and FCEV scenarios as the most cost-effective, contrasting with Power-to-Power scenarios, particularly in the mid and long terms. [Display omitted] • Variable renewables energy mix is implemented for producing green hydrogen. • A demo hydrogen valley in southern Italy has been analysed and simulated. • The Levelised cost of Hydrogen have been assessed over the whole supply chain. • The carbon avoidance cost has been evaluated for each end use scenario. • A comparative analysis from today up 2050 has been performed to identify the most promising scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work assesses pathways towards a net‐zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions chemical industry sector in Germany until 2050, focusing on the ammonia, methanol, ethylene and adipic acid subsectors and the effect of the recycling of C embedded in chemical end products on the GHG abatement cost and primary resource demand. This was done using a bottom‐up mathematical optimization model, including the energy sectors and the chemicals sector, with electricity and biobased options considered. Results show that net‐zero GHG emissions for the considered chemicals in 2050 are attainable at a marginal cost of 640–900 €/tCO2‐eq, even with 26%–36% of demand being satisfied by fossil production routes. This is possible because renewable organic chemicals can act as carbon sinks if, at their end of life, C is permanently stored via landfilling or passed on to the next value chain via recycling. Nonetheless, considering the cost implications, the practical deployment of renewable chemicals is a challenge. The considered renewable chemicals cost 1.3–8 times more than their fossil counterparts, resulting in a marginal CO2 price of 480 €/tCO2‐eq when all primary resources (energy crops, forest residues and renewable electricity) are considered, or 810 €/tCO2‐eq when the availability of arable land is restricted. In the transition to net‐zero emissions for the chemicals under study, a circular economy is important not only for reducing demand for primary resources as is typically the case but also reduces GHG abatement costs by 13%–24% through carbon capture and utilization effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Net-zero targets are not likely to be achievable without the use of negative emission technologies (NETs). Various energy planning tools rarely consider NETs for net-zero emissions planning. Marginal abatement cost (MAC) curves, which plot different emissions reduction options based on specific cost and cumulative emissions reduction, are popular tools for communication and decision support. However, this graphical approach is tedious and hard to use for the calculation of the total system cost. Hence, the automated marginal abatement cost (AMAC) method was recently developed to overcome the limitation of the graphical method. The AMAC was based on the MAC curve but implemented on an optimization platform, which allows it to set rigorous performance targets. In this work, the AMAC is extended for multi-period net-zero emissions planning. The methodology is illustrated with a case study of multiple fossil fuel power plants and two NETs (biochar and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage) with a three-decade planning horizon. In the baseline scenario, it is not possible to achieve net zero due to a deficit of 4.38 Mt CO2/y of negative emissions. The rest of the scenarios achieved net-zero emissions during their target period. Targeting net-zero emissions in every period is at a higher risk of obtaining extreme values of the total system cost ($ 13,824–32,046 M) compared to targeting net-zero emissions only in the last period ($ 10,312–27,116 M). Multi-period decision support models are critical because of the dynamic nature of inputs needed to achieve net-zero emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plastic mulch film in agriculture fulfils multiple purposes. In Germany, farmers apply mulch films to produce crops with specific climate soil conditions. While plastic mulch film benefits agricultural production, the emission of plastic debris and microplastic raises environmental concerns. To date, alternative technologies cannot adequately replace plastic mulch film emitting less plastic. Thus, abatement measures are required to reduce plastic emissions and maintain the application. In a model-based analysis for Germany, we find at the sector level annual plastic emissions of 202 t, and we identify regional emission hotspots with more than 500 g per hectare of utilised agricultural area in regions with intensive plasticulture production. Increasing the film thickness to 40 to 50 μm reduces plastic emissions by 20 to 40%, creating abatement costs from 120 to 130 Euros per kilogram of abated plastic. Increasing prices for plasticulture products by 1 to 10% can compensate for the increased material costs of thicker mulch films. Thus, increasing the film thickness can be an effective and efficient abatement measure, depending on farmers' willingness to apply thicker mulch films and consumers' willingness to pay increased prices. Our findings contribute to the interdisciplinary puzzle of plastic emissions from mulch films. They can be valuable information for agricultural and environmental discussion but require updating and complementation in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fujian Province, China was chosen as the study area for estimating the marginal agricultural abatement costs within the province based on data for 2010-2020. The study employed these estimations as a pivotal factor affecting the efficiency of carbon emissions reduction, constructed an index model to gauge the potential of agricultural carbon emissions reduction, and delved into the urban agricultural carbon emissions reduction potential from the perspectives of economic development rights (equity) and carbon emissions reduction difficulty (efficiency). Our findings indicated a marked regional disparity in the marginal abatement costs of agriculture across Fujian Province, with the highest recorded at EUR 1.3771 × 108 per 104 tonnes and the lowest at EUR 0.6526 × 108 per 104 tonnes, albeit demonstrating general upward inter-annual trends. Furthermore, the assessment of agricultural carbon emissions reduction potential, grounded in the principles of equity and efficiency, revealed four distinct developmental tiers. Resource allocation pathways for carbon emissions reduction were subsequently delineated, informed by the stratification of high- and low-carbon emissions reduction potential indices alongside typological characteristics. The outcomes of this study offer strategic guidance to the government of Fujian Province in crafting suitable carbon emissions reduction strategies and in devising targeted action plans aimed at achieving the twin goals of 'carbon peaking' and 'carbon neutrality'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heat and electricity generation are major sources of air pollution in many large cities worldwide. In Siberian cities, the heat supply significantly contributes to air pollution, as coal remains the primary energy fuel in most of Asian Russia. Krasnoyarsk, the second-largest city in the macro-region by population, serves as a clear example of urban air pollution. In recent years, public authorities have implemented several measures to reduce pollutant emissions. These measures include modernizing thermal power stations, replacing inefficient small boiler houses, and converting residential heating to more environmentally friendly types of fuel. However, our analysis shows that these policies have not yet resulted in a significant transition away from using coal for heating. One of the primary reasons is that alternative fuels are unable to compete with coal in terms of price. The proposal suggests transitioning private households to pellet heating. Our goal is to evaluate the potential environmental and economic impacts of this measure. We estimate the necessary subsidy size for the successful implementation of both initiatives. In conclusion, converting households from coal to pellet heating can reduce the emissions of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, and suspended particles by 0.2%, 8.5%, 4.4%, and 2.7%, respectively, of the total pollutant emissions in Krasnoyarsk. Furthermore, this conversion can provide economic benefits by supporting local pellet producers who heavily rely on export markets. If practically implemented, the proposed approach could solve one of the most significant development issues of one of the largest Russian cities within a few years, with only 2.5% of the annual city budget expenditure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving ambitious climate targets, such as the 1.5 °C goal, demands significant financial commitment. While technical feasibility exists, the economic implications of delayed action and differing scenarios remain unclear. This study addresses this gap by analyzing the investment attractiveness and economic risks/benefits of different climate scenarios through a novel emissions cost budgeting model. A simplified model is developed using five global scenarios: announced policies (type 1 and 2), 2.0 °C, and 1.5 °C. A unit marginal abatement cost estimated the monetary value of avoided and unavoided emissions costs for each scenario. Net present value (NPV) and cost–benefit index (BI) were then calculated to compare the scenario attractiveness of the global emission budgets. The model was further applied to emissions budgets for China, the USA, India, and the European Union (EU). Increasing discount rates and gross domestic product (GDP) led to emission increases across all scenarios. The 1.5 °C scenario achieved the lowest emissions, while the baseline scenario showed the highest potential emissions growth (between 139.48% and 146.5%). Therefore, emphasis on the need for further financial commitment becomes important as the emissions' abatement cost used as best case was estimated at USD 2.4 trillion per unit of 1 Gtons CO2 equivalent (eq.). Policy delays significantly impacted NPV and BI values, showcasing the time value of investment decisions. The model's behavior aligns with real-world observations, including GDP growth influencing inflation and project costs. The simplified model could be coupled to existing integrated assessment frameworks or models (IAMs) as none offer cost–benefit analysis of climate scenarios to the best of our knowledge. Also, the model may be used to examine the economic attractiveness of carbon reduction programs in various nations, cities, and organizations. Thus, the model and analytical approach presented in this work indicate promising applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We can limit the future temperature impact of climate change in two ways: (i) reducing our use of CO2 emitting fuels as an energy source (abatement), and (ii) using negative emission technologies (NETs) to remove existing CO2 from the atmosphere (removal). Using a modification of the DICE model, we analyze the optimal use of these two policy responses to climate change. After calibrating the marginal costs of abatement and CO2 removal to the latest scientific information, we find that carbon removal must play a very large role in an optimal policy. If this policy is followed, we find that the Paris-Agreement 1.5–2∘C warming by 2100 target is not just aspirational, but optimal. When an important role is played by NETs to control global warming, the decrease in carbon emissions can be more gradual, reducing transition risk and social dislocations. We examine the impact on the economy of large-scale carbon removal programs, the potential for moral hazard and the logistical problems associated with the storage of the removed carbon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural manufacturers (abbreviation: Manufacturers) are conventionally committed to carbon emission reductions under government subsidies to achieve carbon neutrality goals, such as manufacturer subsidies and consumer subsidies. In addition, with the increase in consumers' low-carbon preferences, a growing number of retailers exert sales efforts to promote carbon emission reduction. In this paper, we apply a game theory approach and focus on investigating how sales effort and different government subsidies promote manufacturers' carbon emission reductions. We draw several important conclusions: First, we find that government subsidies are not always conducive to promoting carbon emissions reductions. Second, we show that consumer subsidies impose a higher (lower) financial burden on the government than manufacturer subsidies when carbon abatement costs are above (below) a threshold. Furthermore, retailers are preferable to impose sales effort under consumer subsidies when the cost of sales effort is higher. Third, the results suggest that manufacturer subsidies are more conducive to maximizing social welfare when consumer low-carbon preferences are small in the presence of retailer-imposed sales effort. Something counterintuitive is that we find that social welfare is more likely to be optimal without government subsidies as consumer low-carbon preferences increase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current industrial and economic activities in Sindh Province, Pakistan, polluted the region's water, air, soil, and marine resources. However, there is a rising demand for eco-friendly production, and it is important to develop new policies and tools to combat environmental degradation and enhance economic development. Cleaner Production (CP) provides opportunities to address many of these issues. Employed method for this study was based on three approaches: a literature review and stakeholder mapping; a collection of data and information from key stakeholders through focal group discussions, consultative workshops, and one-on-one meetings; and analysis and synthesis of data that were gathered from different sources. The analysis of collected information provides an overview of CP strategies moving forward. Participant workshops gave in-depth information on policy implementation, technological impediments to methods that have been employed elsewhere, and needed capacity building as well as financial consequences of policy implementation. Through increasing financial resources and institutional resources, the expansion of CP will help to replace the conventional methods of waste treatment with an eco-efficiency approach to preventing pollution at the source, thus reducing the need for expensive pollution control and management costs for environmental compliance. Experiences, achievements, and implementation pitfalls from this study can provide a lesson to other developing countries to improve their economic and environmental sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon emission reduction is an essential means to achieve the "double carbon goal," and the scientific and reasonable allocation of carbon emission quotas (CEQ) is the basis for promoting carbon emission reduction. In this study, the first level was based on the entropy TOPSIS scores of provinces under the principles of fairness, efficiency, sustainability, and feasibility and used the K-mean clustering method to cluster the 30 provinces and allocate the CEQ to each zone group; the second level consolidated the impacts of the four principles and the marginal abatement costs of CO2 to allocate CEQ to the provinces within the zone group. Finally, each province's initial spatial balance of CEQ (ISBQ) is classified and evaluated. The study shows that the most quotas are for Guangdong, Zhejiang, and Inner Mongolia, and the least for Ningxia, Shanxi, and Guizhou. This study compares the results of CEQ allocation with the current carbon emission scale and finds that 11 provinces, such as Shandong and Hebei, show a deficit in future carbon emission space, and 19 provinces, such as Hainan and Beijing, show a surplus in carbon emission space. Given each province's different emission reduction tasks and pressures, differentiated emission control policies are the key to achieving China's "2030 target". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A mid-century net zero target creates a challenge for reducing the emissions of emissions-intensive, trade-exposed sectors with high cost mitigation options. These sectors include aluminium, cement, chemicals, iron and steel, lime, pulp and paper and petroleum refining. Available studies agree that decarbonization of these sectors is possible by mid-century if more ambitious policies are implemented soon. Existing carbon pricing policies have had limited impact on the emissions of these sectors because their marginal abatement costs almost always exceed the tax rate or allowance price. But emissions trading systems with free allowance allocations to emissions-intensive, trade-exposed sectors have minimized the adverse economic impacts and associated leakage. Internationally coordinated policies are unlikely, so implementing more ambitious policies creates a risk of leakage. This paper presents policy packages a country can implement to accelerate emission reduction by these sectors with minimal risk of leakage. To comply with international trade law the policy packages differ for producers whose goods compete with imports in the domestic market and producers whose goods are exported. Carbon pricing is a critical component of each package due its ability to minimize the risk of adverse economic impacts on domestic industry, support innovation and generate revenue. The revenue can be used to assist groups adversely impacted by the domestic price and production changes due to carbon pricing and to build public support for the policies. A country with a mid-century net zero GHG emission target likely will need to implement more ambitious mitigation policies soon for emission-intensive sectors such as aluminium, cement, chemicals, iron and steel, lime, pulp and paper and petroleum refining. More ambitious mitigation policies are likely to vary by country and be implemented at different times, creating a risk of leakage due to industrial production shifts to other jurisdictions. More ambitious mitigation policy packages, compatible with international trade law, that a country can implement to reduce emissions from these sectors with minimal risk of leakage are available but differ for producers whose goods compete with imports in the domestic market and those whose goods are exported. Carbon pricing is a critical component of each package due its ability to minimize the risk of adverse economic impacts on domestic producers, support innovation and generate revenue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several EU countries have targets for the reduction of CO2e emissions that go beyond the target set by the EU. We study what would be the optimal carbon tax policy in such EU frontrunner countries, focusing on two questions: 1) How should national climate policy be coordinated with the European Emissions Trading System (ETS), and 2) How should an EU frontrunner country address the risk of carbon leakage? We show that these issues are closely linked and that the answers to the two questions depend on the following factors: i) The shadow cost assigned to carbon leakage, ii) The rates of carbon leakage in the ETS and non-ETS sectors, and iii) The price of ETS emission allowances relative to the domestic marginal abatement cost of attaining the desired reduction of domestic emissions. Our analysis shows that it is preferable for an EU frontrunner country to implement a national ETS sector carbon tax that results in a higher total carbon price in the national ETS sector compared to the national non-ETS sector. We illustrate how our theoretical model can be combined with a modified version of the GTAP-E general equilibrium model of the world economy to estimate the parameters of the optimal national carbon tax scheme in an EU frontrunner country, using Denmark as an example. We find that the ETS sector should pay a total carbon price that is between 33 and 78 percent above that of the rest of the economy depending on the aversion to carbon leakage. Key policy insights It is generally optimal for an EU frontrunner country – one with a domestic emission target beyond that set by the EU – to implement a national ETS sector tax. The total national carbon price should be higher in the ETS sector compared to the non-ETS sector. Data for Denmark indicate that the total national ETS sector carbon price should be at least 33 percent higher than that of the national non-ETS sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endoscopy, a pervasive instrument for the diagnosis and treatment of hollow anatomical structures, conventionally necessitates the arduous manual scrutiny of seasoned medical experts. Nevertheless, the recent strides in deep learning technologies proffer novel avenues for research, endowing it with the potential for amplified robustness and precision, accompanied by the pledge of cost abatement in detection procedures, while simultaneously providing substantial assistance to clinical practitioners. Within this investigation, we usher in an innovative technique for the identification of anomalies in endoscopic imagery, christened as Context-enhanced Feature Fusion with Boundary-aware Convolution (GFFBAC). We employ the Context-enhanced Feature Fusion (CEFF) methodology, underpinned by Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), to establish equilibrium amidst the tiers of the feature pyramids. These intricately harnessed features are subsequently amalgamated into the Boundary-aware Convolution (BAC) module to reinforce both the faculties of localization and classification. A thorough exploration conducted across three disparate datasets elucidates that the proposition not only surpasses its contemporaries in object detection performance but also yields detection boxes of heightened precision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper examines empirically the importance of equity preferences for the formation of international environmental agreements (IEA) for transboundary pollution control. Although it has been shown theoretically that the existence of equity preferences among countries considering an IEA increases the chances for formation and stability of a coalition, empirical assessments of such preferences have been limited to climate change mitigation and single‐country studies. We consider the case of marine plastic pollution, of which a large share consists of food and beverage containers, representing a transboundary pollution control problem of increasing policy concern, with properties that lead to distinct considerations for equity and the sharing of abatement costs. We employ a coordinated choice experiment in the United Kingdom and United States to assess preferences for abatement‐cost allocations in a marine plastics IEA. Pairs of cooperating countries and the relative allocation of abatement costs are varied experimentally. Results show systematic aversion to both advantageous and disadvantageous inequality with respect to abatement costs but also that the relative strength of advantageous and disadvantageous inequality aversion differs across countries. Across both countries, there is evidence that left‐leaning voters generally favor more equal international sharing of abatement costs. Differences of these results from the case of greenhouse gas emission reduction, and implications for current efforts to establish a legally binding global treaty on marine plastic pollution, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrification is a centerpiece of global decarbonization efforts. Yet there are reasons to be skeptical of the inevitability, or at least the optimal pace, of the transition. We discuss several underappreciated costs of full, or even deep, electrification. Consumer preferences can operate in favor of and in opposition to electrification goals, and electrification is likely to encounter physical and economic obstacles when it reaches some as-yet-unknown level. Although we readily acknowledge the external benefits of decarbonization, we also explore several underappreciated external costs. The credibility and eventual success of decarbonization efforts will be enhanced by foreseeing and ideally avoiding predictable but nonobvious costs of promising abatement pathways. Thus, even with all of its promise, the degree of electrification may ultimately reach a limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The carbon neutrality goal has emerged as the most popular way for institutions to frame policy responses to climate change, largely because of its flexibility as a net-zero emissions target. We highlight two desirable features arising from this flexibility: the potential for reducing emissions at a lower cost and the potential for promoting distributive justice. To demonstrate the role of cost-effectiveness, we report estimates of average emissions abatement cost of solar electricity plants located (hypothetically) in each of the 48 states of the conterminous United States. We then explain how institutions may pursue distributive justice by targeting cobenefits of emissions-reducing projects to specific areas or groups. We also describe the two primary concerns with carbon neutrality goals: additionality and ethics. To allay these concerns, we suggest improvements to the basic integrity of carbon markets and ways in which institutions can commit to local decarbonization in tandem with carbon neutrality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the 'Cap-and-Trade' mechanism of carbon emission, the low carbon management of supply chain is an indispensable link in the process of enterprise emission reduction. Constrained by carbon price and consumers' environmental awareness, this paper establishes a two-stage game model between retailers and manufacturers under decentralized and centralized decisions. Under the decentralized decision, this paper analyzes the optimal carbon emissions before and after the transfer, the conditions of transfer and the changes of profits with the proportion of transfer. Under the centralized decision, Nash equilibrium is used to study the distribution of additional profits. Conclusions are obtained as follows. (a) There are thresholds for carbon price and consumers' environmental awareness on carbon emissions, and the optimal emissions on both sides of the threshold will vary with the cost of emission reduction. (b) In a decentralized decision, the participation of retailers in abatement depends on the market abatement costs and abatement benefits, while a certain range of transfer rates can optimize the profitability of retailers. (c) In the centralized decision, manufacturer and retailer formulate emission reduction strategies jointly and share the extra profits equally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The existing studies of emissions reduction focus mainly on the technical potential and abatement costs while overlooking firms' willingness to pay (WTP) for emissions reduction. Yet WTP is a key parameter in a firm's decision to carry out emissions reduction while maximizing its profits. This paper estimates China's manufacturing industry (CMI) firms' maximum WTP for carbon abatement—defined as the cumulative product between the marginal abatement cost and corresponding abatement potential—using a large sample from a data envelopment analysis model. The results show that (a) the maximum WTP is significantly constrained by an isocost carbon abatement curve at RMB 8.65 million for the representative CMI firm; (b) the representative firms' WTP for carbon abatement varies among the sub‐sectors; and (c) profitability and production scales both positively affect firms' WTP for carbon abatement in all of CMI sub‐sectors, while innovation investment has a negative effect. The results suggest that the cost of carbon reduction technology for CMI firms should be below RMB 8.65 million for a representative CMI firm. The government should formulate subsidies or tax relief policies to help firms reduce their abatement costs. Further, the division of tasks in different sub‐sectors, between carbon emissions reduction on the one hand, and ongoing innovation on the other, should be clearly distinguished by policy bias to promote the transformation of industrial structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cellulosic biofuels from non-food feedstocks, while appealing, continue to encounter uncertainty about their induced land use change (ILUC) effects, net greenhouse gas (GHG) saving potential and their economic costs. We analyse the implications of multiple uncertainties along the biofuel supply chain from feedstock yields, land availability for production to conversion to fuel in the refinery on these outcomes. We find that compared to corn ethanol, cellulosic biofuels have a substantially smaller and less uncertain ILUC-related GHG intensity and lead to larger GHG savings at lower welfare costs of abatement, indicating the potential to make robust and substantial contributions to cost-effective climate change mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The green and low-carbon transformation of the iron and steel industry stands as a pivotal cornerstone in the development of China. It is an inevitable trajectory guiding the future of industry. This study examined the energy consumption and carbon emission trends in the iron and steel industry. Variations under different scenarios were analyzed while emphasizing production control, changes in production structure and energy efficiency improvement. The analysis integrated the extreme energy efficiency model. This study proposed methods to enhance energy efficiency in the iron and steel industry. The costs of energy efficiency improvement and production structure changes were assessed using marginal energy saving and abatement cost curves. The findings showed that the carbon emission reduction contribution of crude steel production decline is the highest, while energy efficiency improvement technology offers the smallest, whose contribution, however, is substantial and cannot be overlooked by 2030. Energy efficiency improvement in the Chinese iron and steel industry results in an average unit energy saving and abatement cost of 27.0 yuan. It results in a total abatement cost of 21.02 billion yuan and a potential abatement of 780 Mt. Considering abatement potential, altering production structure offers significantly higher cumulative abatement compared to energy efficiency improvement technology. This is because the per unit abatement cost of production structure change is 702.7 yuan. However, this high cost poses a challenge to widespread adoption. The integration of the iron and steel industry into the carbon trading system necessitates reinforcing market constraints and expediting process adjustments. These steps are crucial to achieving the green and low-carbon transformation of the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: This approach can assist industrial logistics professionals in obtaining a fresh viewpoint toward their decarbonization strategy. This article explores how different types of inventories affect the costs of decarbonizing transportation in manufacturing companies. For these companies, it is difficult to find affordable ways to reduce emissions from transportation given their resource scarcity. Additionally, they handle numerous inventory items that have varying transportation needs based on their order frequency and value, which necessitates the development of tailored inventory management strategies. One tool to do so efficiently is the ABC/XYZ analysis, which classifies items into nine different inventory categories. These groups have different economic importance and predictability, which impacts total logistics costs. Our literature analysis contends that lower-carbon transportation alternatives yield varying abatement costs contingent upon the specific inventory categories. Subsequently, we empirically validate this proposition through discrete-event simulations in two case studies involving Austrian manufacturing enterprises, employing combined road-rail transportation as an illustrative decarbonization measure. Statistical tests substantiate the significance of the XYZ dimension in influencing carbon emission abatement costs during the transition from road to rail transportation. In conclusion, our study offers a novel perspective on decarbonization efforts, underscoring the importance of leveraging established management tools to inform strategic decarbonization decisions. This research holds promise for catalyzing progress in overcoming entrenched challenges associated with decarbonization initiatives within industrial logistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incentive policies play a crucial role in encouraging the adoption of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency measures. This study analyzes and compares the incentives for energy transition in the South Tyrol region of Italy using a marginal abatement cost (MAC) curve constructed with an expert-based approach. The incentives for residential energy efficiency, mobility, and boiler replacement are characterized based on assumptions for costs, energy savings, and parameters. The resulting expert-based MAC curve analysis reveals boiler replacement incentives to be the most cost-effective, yielding CO2 reductions at the lowest cost but with limited potential as the incentive is limited to apartment blocks that are not in district heating areas. Mobility incentives enabling electric vehicle adoption have the highest CO2 reduction potential, albeit at higher costs per ton abated. Residential energy efficiency incentives fall between the two for cost-effectiveness and potential. The MAC curve approach provides a useful comparison of cost-effectiveness versus potential, guiding policy prioritization. This techno-economic assessment methodology can be applied to other regions pursuing energy transition. Overall, a balanced policy mix encompassing transport, buildings, and heating is required for comprehensive low-carbon transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maritime transport accounts for around 3% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (Well-to-Wake). These GHG emissions must be reduced by at least 50% in absolute values by 2050 to contribute to the ambitions of the Paris Agreement signed in 2015. Switching to zero-carbon fuels made from renewable sources (hydro, wind, or solar) is seen by many as the most promising option to deliver the desired GHG reductions. However, renewable energy is a scarce resource that gives a much larger GHG reduction spent within other sectors. This study explores how to reach the IMO 2050 GHG targets exclusively through energy efficiency measures. The results indicate that by combining wind-assisted ship propulsion (WASP) with a slender hull form, fuel consumption and GHG emissions can be reduced by 30-35%, at a negative abatement cost for speeds exceeding 8 knots. Where the cost saving increases with the speed because at higher speeds, the fuel accounts for a higher share of the total cost, which implies that the cost saving goes from zero at 8 knots, to 5% reduction at 11 knots average speed to 14% reduction of total cost with 15 knots average speed. In comparison, GHG reductions through zero-carbon fuels will increase transport costs by 50-200%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, global emissions have put the world beyond its goals. While there are calls for increasing ambition, countries must match their current international commitments at the national level. Democracies were assumed to comply with their own international commitments, yet their ability to adopt national mitigation policies that are consistent with their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) varies. This study applies the Vertical Policy Harmonization Index to quantify the extent to which countries' mitigation commitments are vertically harmonized in their NDCs and national policies. Using qualitative comparative analysis, I investigate the role of institutions, interests, and ideas in shaping the vertical (dis)harmony of twenty-four democracies. I find that fossil fuel dependency constrains the harmonization of mitigation commitments, even in the face of high vulnerability and low abatement costs. Moreover, the results support the previous findings of an ambiguous relationship between veto points and mitigation commitment. However, the roles of an established green party and public opinion in shaping disharmony remain unclear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transportation is one of the main contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Climate regulations on transportation are often a mix of sector-specific regulations and economy-wide measures (such as emission pricing). In this paper we consider how different and partly overlapping climate regulations interact and what are the effects on economic welfare, abatement costs and emissions? Our focus is on Norway, a nation where high taxation of conventional fossil-fuelled cars has paved the floor for another pillar of climate policies: promotion of electric vehicles (EVs) in private transport. Our contribution to the literature is two-fold. First, we analyse the costs and impacts of the partly overlapping climate regulations in transportation—the cap on domestic non-ETS emissions and the goal of all new cars for private households being EVs—focussing on the outcome in 2030. Second, we respond to a gap in the literature through a methodological development in economy-wide computable general equilibrium (CGE) approaches for climate policy by introducing EV technologies as an explicit transport equipment choice for private households. We find that, for the case of Norway, combining a specific EV target with policy to cap emissions through a uniform carbon price more than doubles the welfare costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protecting human health from fine particulate matter (PM) pollution is the ambitious goal of clean air actions, but current control strategies largely ignore the role of source-specific PM toxicity. Here, we proposed health-oriented control strategies by integrating the unequal toxic potencies of the most polluting industrial PMs. Iron and steel industry (ISI)-emitted PM2.5 exhibit about one order of magnitude higher toxic potency than those of cement and power industries. Compared with the current mass-based control strategy (prioritizing implementation of ultralow emission standards in the power sector), the proposed health-oriented control strategy (priority control of the ISI sector) could generate 5.4 times higher reduction in population-weighted toxic potency-adjusted PM2.5 exposure among polluting industries in China. Furthermore, the marginal abatement cost per unit of toxic potency-adjusted mass of ISI-emitted PM2.5 is only a quarter of that of the other two sectors under ultralow emission scenarios. We highlight that a health-oriented air pollution control strategy is urgently required to achieve cost-effective reductions in particulate exposure risks. Health-oriented emissions reduction in China focusing on the iron and steel industry can reduce costs by 1.56 billion dollars while lowering the population-weighted toxic potency-adjusted exposure risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surveys of the costs of inputs assigned to pollution abatement (Stated Costs) have been the principal method used to estimate pollution abatement costs. While surveys have been widely used, problems with these surveys may adversely affect their ability to accurately measure pollution abatement costs. In this paper, we propose a method that does not depend on surveys of input costs. Instead, a nonparametric cost function that models the joint production of good and bad outputs is used to identify the cost of inputs assigned to pollution abatement (Revealed Costs). The increased input costs when the bad output is not freely disposable compared to input costs when the bad output is freely disposable constitute our estimate of the revealed cost of pollution abatement. Our model is illustrated using data from coal-fired electric power plants in the United States for 2000–2005. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon pricing is one of the key policy tools in the green recovery of the post-COVID-19 era. As linkages among ETSs worldwide are future trend, the carbon price spillover effects among markets are needed to be explored. This study examines the spillover effects and dynamic linkages of carbon prices using the example of China's pilot carbon markets during 2015–2019, which are seemingly independent carbon markets. A structural vector error correction model and an improved directed acyclic graph approach are applied. The main results are as follows. First, the linkages among the five pilots demonstrate features of "two small-world networks." Specifically, these are the Guangdong and Hubei network and the Beijing, Shenzhen and Shanghai network. Second, Shenzhen, Beijing and Hubei ranked as the top three pilots in terms of external spillover effect, accounting for 36.25%, 29.76%, and 25.59%, respectively. Second, Guangdong pilot has increasing influence on the Hubei, Shenzhen and Beijing pilots. Third, trading activities are positive contributors to the spillover, while the allowance illiquidity ratio and volatility are negative factors. The findings imply that to retain an expectable abatement costs in achieving the climate goals in green recovery, carbon prices in other potentially related markets should be considered by the policy maker in addition to its own policy design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green credit policy (GCP) has dual attributes of being both an "environmental regulation" and a "financial instrument". Understanding its role in facilitating industrial green transformation is crucial. However, there is limited theoretical and empirical evidence on the impact of GCP on industrial green transformation. This research fills this gap by comprehensively investigating the impacts and mechanisms of GCP on industrial energy intensity (EI) in China, considering both incentive and constraint effects. Theoretically, the environmental and financial impacts of GCP are merged into a unified analytical framework based on a heterogeneous enterprise model. Empirically, diverse empirical methods, including difference-in-differences (DID), difference-in-differences-in-differences (DDD), and mediating effects models, are adopted to examine whether GCP can promote green innovation or accelerate financial constraints. Results show that (1) GCP significantly decreases EI, especially among high-polluting enterprises (HPEs). The impact of incentives is far greater than that of constraints. (2) Regarding the incentive effect, energy substitution and innovation offsets exert a primary influence on reducing EI. (3) The constraint effect is caused primarily by rising financing and pollution abatement costs. (4) Heterogeneity analysis shows that the inhibiting effect of GCP is more significant in non-state-owned enterprises, underdeveloped financial markets, and abundant energy endowments. This paper provides a theoretical framework and new empirical evidence for policymakers to design effective policies for promoting industrial green transformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing presence of EVs in regional microgrids introduces increased variability and uncertainty in the areas' load profiles. This paper presents a novel approach for optimizing energy and reserve minimization in a sustainable integrated microgrid with electric vehicles (EVs) by the use of the dynamic and adjustable Manta Ray Foraging (DAMRF) algorithm. The DAMRF algorithm harnesses the inherent flexibility of EVs as controllable loads and develops a comprehensive dispatch model for a large-scale EV response. The model takes into account the management, operational, and environmental costs associated with load fluctuations in the microgrid. Simulation evaluations conducted based on a practical microgrid environment validate the effectiveness of our wind–solar energy storage and management strategy. The results showcase significant improvements in energy and reserve minimization, highlighting the potential advantages of integrating EVs into sustainable microgrid systems. In addition, the DAMRF algorithm achieves lower environmental pollution control costs (USD 8000) compared to the costs associated with the Genetic Algorithm (GA) (USD 8654.639) and PSO (USD 8579.546), emphasizing its ability to effectively control and minimize environmental pollution. In addition, the DAMRF algorithm offers a more cost-effective solution for managing the power grid, and the shorter solution running time of the DAMRF is almost the same as PSO's quicker decision-making and response times, enhancing the overall responsiveness and adaptability of the power grid management system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]