Eco-efficiency: trends, goals and their implementation in Lithuania

Abstract Paper aims to explore the progress in eco-efficiency and the course of decoupling of environmental impact from economy growth in Lithuania during 1990–2008. For better interpretation of ongoing changes in eco-efficiency the concept of double decoupling was applied. Decoupling of resource consumption from economy growth is considered as primary decoupling, and decoupling of environmental pollution from resource consumption is considered as secondary decoupling. Energy intensity is treated as indicator of primary decoupling and pollution intensity as indicator of secondary decoupling. Over investigated period an essential primary decoupling took place and final energy intensity was reduced approximately 2.5 times in Lithuania and has converged to the level of EU-15 on average. Transition to the market economy, shift to the modern technologies, increased energy prices and structural changes of Lithuanian economy are considered as the main drivers for this achievement. Progress in secondary decouplin...

[1]  Mikko Jalas,et al.  A Time Use Perspective on the Materials Intensity of Consumption , 2002 .

[2]  Dalia Streimikiene,et al.  Energy intensity in transition economies: Is there convergence towards the EU average? , 2006 .

[3]  D. Štreimikienė,et al.  Energy indicators for sustainable development in Baltic States , 2007 .

[4]  Helmut Schütz,et al.  Sustainable development by dematerialization in production and consumption: Strategy for the new environmental policy in Poland:results of the research project: ECOPOL: ecological economic policy - strategy for Poland in the 21st century , 2000 .

[5]  Janne Hukkinen,et al.  From groundless universalism to grounded generalism: improving ecological economic indicators of human-environmental interaction , 2003 .

[6]  Tim Jackson.  Prosperity without growth? : the transition to a sustainable economy : [summary] , 2009 .

[7]  Samuel Fankhauser,et al.  The energy intensity of transition countries , 2004 .

[8]  Ignacio J. Pérez-Arriaga,et al.  Comparison of the evolution of energy intensity in Spain and in the EU15. Why is Spain different , 2010 .

[9]  M. Binswanger.  Technological progress and sustainable development: what about the rebound effect? , 2001 .

[10]  J. Seppälä,et al.  Regional eco-efficiency indicators – a participatory approach , 2006 .

[11]  Janne Hukkinen,et al.  Eco-efficiency as abandonment of nature , 2001 .

[12]  Vytautas Martinaitis,et al.  Search for optimal solution of public building renovation in terms of life cycle , 2010 .

[13]  Raimund Bleischwitz,et al.  Cognitive and institutional perspectives of eco-efficiency , 2003 .

[14]  Ines Omann,et al.  Sustainable growth criteria: Minimum benchmarks and scenarios for employment and the environment , 2002 .

[15]  Pranas Baltrenas,et al.  Modelling of motor transport exhaust gas influence on the atmosphere , 2008 .

[16]  Eea.  Sustainable use and management of natural resources , 2005 .

[17]  Dalia Streimikiene,et al.  Promotion of energy efficiency in Lithuania , 2008 .

[18]  A. Cherp,et al.  Economic transition and environmental sustainability: effects of economic restructuring on air pollution in the Russian Federation. , 2003, Journal of environmental management.

[19]  Peter D. Blair,et al.  Economic structure, fuel combustion, and pollution emissions , 1997 .

[20]  Diana Ürge-Vorsatz,et al.  Energy in transition: From the iron curtain to the European Union , 2006 .

[21]  BUILDING A FRAMEWORK FOR NATIONAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT AND APPLICATION FOR LITHUANIA: SUSTAINABILITY IN TRANSITION , 2009 .