A global, scope-based carbon footprint modeling for effective carbon reduction policies: Lessons from the Turkish manufacturing

A B S T R A C T The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and the World Resource Institute (WRI) set the scope-based carbon footprint accounting standards in which all possible supply-chain related indirect greenhouse gas emissions are captured. Although this carbon footprint accounting standards are widely used in regional policy making, there is little effort in analyzing the scope-based carbon footprints of nations using a multi-region input–output (MRIO) analysis in order to consider the role of global trade. This research aims to advance the body of knowledge on carbon footprint analysis of the manufacturing sectors with a holistic approach combining the WBCSD & WRI’s scope-based carbon footprint accounting standards with a time series MRIO framework. To achieve this goal, a global scope-based carbon footprint analysis of the Turkish manufacturing sectors has been conducted as a case study. We employed a time series MRIO analysis by using the World Input–Output Database on the world’s 40 largest economies covering 1440 economic sectors. The results showed that electricity, gas and water supply was the most dominant sector in the supply chains of the Turkish industrial sectors with the largest carbon footprint. On average, indirect emissions of the Turkish manufacturing industry are found to be higher than direct emissions during the period from 2000 to 2009. The results of this analysis revealed that supply chain related indirect emissions (represented by scope 3) are responsible for nearly 56.5% total carbon emissions of sectors, which highlights the crucial role of supply chains on overall carbon footprint of sectors.

[1]  Weichun Ma,et al.  A study on carbon emissions in Shanghai 2000–2008, China , 2013 .

[2]  Sangwon Suh,et al.  Five years in the area of input-output and hybrid LCA , 2007 .

[3]  Ranko Bon,et al.  Comparative Stability Analysis of Multiregional Input-Output Models: Column, Row, and Leontief-Strout Gravity Coefficient Models , 1984 .

[4]  Jan Kovanda,et al.  The importance of raw material equivalents in economy-wide material flow accounting and its policy dimension , 2013 .

[5]  Y. Ronen.  Uncertainty Analysis , 1988 .

[6]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Economic Input–Output Based Sustainability Analysis of Onshore and Offshore Wind Energy Systems , 2015 .

[7]  Jiří Jaromír Klemeš,et al.  A Review of Footprint analysis tools for monitoring impacts on sustainability , 2012 .

[8]  J. Sterman.  Communicating climate change risks in a skeptical world , 2011 .

[9]  S. Lutter,et al.  Quo Vadis MRIO? Methodological, data and institutional requirements for multi-region input-output analysis , 2011 .

[10]  T. Wiedmann.  A review of recent multi-region input–output models used for consumption-based emission and resource accounting , 2009 .

[11]  Adisa Azapagic,et al.  Environmental impacts of the UK residential sector: Life cycle assessment of houses , 2012 .

[12]  Kay Hailbronner,et al.  C ountry r eport : G ermany , 2010 .

[13]  John Barrett,et al.  Identification of 'carbon hot-spots' and quantification of GHG intensities in the biodiesel supply chain using hybrid LCA and structural path analysis. , 2011, Environmental science & technology.

[14]  Anne Owen,et al.  COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF MRIO DATABASES , 2014 .

[15]  Subramanian Senthilkannan Muthu,et al.  Carbon footprint reduction in the textile process chain: Recycling of textile materials , 2012, Fibers and Polymers.

[16]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  EFFECTS OF SECTOR AGGREGATION ON CO2 MULTIPLIERS IN MULTIREGIONAL INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSES , 2014 .

[17]  G. Bonan.  Forests and Climate Change: Forcings, Feedbacks, and the Climate Benefits of Forests , 2008, Science.

[18]  Almudena Hospido,et al.  Carbon footprint of canned mussels from a business-to-consumer approach. A starting point for mussel processors and policy makers , 2010 .

[19]  O. Tatari,et al.  upply chain sustainability assessment of the U . S . food manufacturing ectors : A life cycle-based frontier approach , 2013 .

[20]  Edgar G. Hertwich,et al.  The Application of Multi-regional Input-Output Analysis to Industrial Ecology , 2009 .

[21]  Simon Buckle,et al.  Mitigation of climate change , 2009, The Daunting Climate Change.

[22]  Gjalt Huppes,et al.  System boundary selection in life-cycle inventories using hybrid approaches. , 2004, Environmental science & technology.

[23]  Peter D. Blair,et al.  Input-Output Analysis , 2021 .

[24]  Stephan Moll,et al.  Towards a global multi-regional environmentally extended input-output database , 2009 .

[25]  Kjartan Steen-Olsen,et al.  Carbon, land, and water footprint accounts for the European Union: consumption, production, and displacements through international trade. , 2012, Environmental science & technology.

[26]  S. Davis,et al.  Consumption-based accounting of CO2 emissions , 2010, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[27]  Ian D. Williams,et al.  ‘Carbon footprinting’: towards a universally accepted definition , 2011 .

[28]  José M. Rueda-Cantuche,et al.  Will China comply with its 2020 carbon intensity commitment , 2015 .

[29]  Timo Busch,et al.  Corporate Carbon Performance Indicators , 2008 .

[30]  Glen P. Peters,et al.  The contribution of Chinese exports to climate change , 2008 .

[31]  A. Hoekstra,et al.  Humanity’s unsustainable environmental footprint , 2014, Science.

[32]  G. Peters,et al.  APPROXIMATION AND REGIONAL AGGREGATION IN MULTI-REGIONAL INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS FOR NATIONAL CARBON FOOTPRINT ACCOUNTING , 2009 .

[33]  Glen P. Peters,et al.  COMPARING THE GTAP-MRIO AND WIOD DATABASES FOR CARBON FOOTPRINT ANALYSIS , 2014 .

[34]  Adisa Azapagic,et al.  Life cycle assessment as a tool for improving process performance: A case study on boron products , 1999 .

[35]  Glen P. Peters,et al.  Comparing the use of GTAP-MRIO and WIOD for carbon footprint analysis , 2014 .

[36]  J. Minx,et al.  INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS AND CARBON FOOTPRINTING: AN OVERVIEW OF APPLICATIONS , 2009 .

[37]  H. S. Matthews,et al.  Food-miles and the relative climate impacts of food choices in the United States. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[38]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  BUILDING EORA: A GLOBAL MULTI-REGION INPUT–OUTPUT DATABASE AT HIGH COUNTRY AND SECTOR RESOLUTION , 2013 .

[39]  S. Giljum,et al.  Materials embodied in international trade – Global material extraction and consumption between 1995 and 2005 , 2012 .

[40]  P. Bhatia,et al.  The greenhouse gas protocol : a corporate accounting and reporting standard , 2001 .

[41]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Sustainability Metrics for Performance-Based Seismic Bridge Response , 2016 .

[42]  Fanxin Meng,et al.  Using hybrid method to evaluate carbon footprint of Xiamen City, China , 2013 .

[43]  Jiří Jaromír Klemeš,et al.  The Environmental Performance Strategy Map: an integrated LCA approach to support the strategic decision-making process , 2009 .

[44]  Glen P. Peters,et al.  CONSTRUCTING AN ENVIRONMENTALLY-EXTENDED MULTI-REGIONAL INPUT–OUTPUT TABLE USING THE GTAP DATABASE , 2011 .

[45]  S. Joshi.  Product Environmental Life‐Cycle Assessment Using Input‐Output Techniques , 1999 .

[46]  H. S. Matthews,et al.  The importance of carbon footprint estimation boundaries. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[47]  Gjalt Huppes,et al.  Life cycle assessment: past, present, and future. , 2011, Environmental science & technology.

[48]  Bart Los,et al.  THE CONSTRUCTION OF WORLD INPUT–OUTPUT TABLES IN THE WIOD PROJECT , 2013 .

[49]  Arnold Tukker,et al.  EXIOPOL – DEVELOPMENT AND ILLUSTRATIVE ANALYSES OF A DETAILED GLOBAL MR EE SUT/IOT , 2013 .

[50]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Towards a triple bottom-line sustainability assessment of the U.S. construction industry , 2013, The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment.

[51]  E. Hertwich,et al.  Carbon footprint of nations: a global, trade-linked analysis. , 2009, Environmental science & technology.

[52]  W. Leontief.  Environmental Repercussions and the Economic Structure: An Input-Output Approach , 1970 .

[53]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  Hybrid input–output life cycle assessment of warm mix asphalt mixtures , 2015 .

[54]  E. Hertwich,et al.  The case for consumption-based accounting of greenhouse gas emissions to promote local climate action , 2009 .

[55]  José M. Rueda-Cantuche,et al.  A SYMMETRIC INPUT–OUTPUT TABLE FOR EU27: LATEST PROGRESS , 2009 .

[56]  Thomas Wiedmann,et al.  Integrating ecological, carbon and water footprint into a "footprint family" of indicators: Definition and role in tracking human pressure on the planet , 2012 .

[57]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Integrating triple bottom line input–output analysis into life cycle sustainability assessment framework: the case for US buildings , 2014, The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment.

[58]  P. Parvatha Reddy,et al.  Causes of Climate Change , 2015 .

[59]  Jan Weinzettel,et al.  A Footprint Family extended MRIO model to support Europe's transition to a One Planet Economy. , 2013, The Science of the total environment.

[60]  Omer Tatari,et al.  Towards greening the U.S. residential building stock: A system dynamics approach , 2014 .

[61]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Stochastic decision modeling for sustainable pavement designs , 2014, The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment.

[62]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  Integrating sustainable chain management with triple bottom line accounting , 2005 .

[63]  Eric Williams,et al.  Energy intensity of computer manufacturing: hybrid assessment combining process and economic input-output methods. , 2004, Environmental science & technology.

[64]  Stephan Pfister,et al.  COMPARISON OF BOTTOM-UP AND TOP-DOWN APPROACHES TO CALCULATING THE WATER FOOTPRINTS OF NATIONS , 2011 .

[65]  Adisa Azapagic,et al.  Life cycle assessment of electricity generation in Mexico , 2011 .

[66]  Kirsten S. Wiebe,et al.  CALCULATING ENERGY-RELATED CO2 EMISSIONS EMBODIED IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE USING A GLOBAL INPUT–OUTPUT MODEL , 2012 .

[67]  Gonzalo Guillén-Gosálbez,et al.  Statistical analysis of global environmental impact patterns using a world multi-regional input–output database , 2015 .

[68]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  CO2 Multipliers in Multi-region Input-Output Models , 2004 .

[69]  Adisa Azapagic,et al.  Life cycle environmental impacts of electricity from fossil fuels in Turkey , 2015 .

[70]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  A CARBON FOOTPRINT TIME SERIES OF THE UK – RESULTS FROM A MULTI-REGION INPUT–OUTPUT MODEL , 2010 .

[71]  Wassily Leontief,et al.  Structure of the World Economy: Outline of a Simple Input-Output Formulation , 1974 .

[72]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  A Novel Life Cycle-based Principal Component Analysis Framework for Eco-efficiency Analysis: Case of the United States Manufacturing and Transportation Nexus , 2015 .

[73]  Yong Geng,et al.  Carbon footprint evaluation at industrial park level: A hybrid life cycle assessment approach , 2013 .

[74]  O. Tatari,et al.  Sustainability assessment of U.S. final consumption and investments: triple-bottom-line input–output analysis , 2014 .

[75]  Richard Wood,et al.  AUSTRALIA'S CARBON FOOTPRINT , 2009 .

[76]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Scope-based carbon footprint analysis of U.S. residential and commercial buildings: An input–output hybrid life cycle assessment approach , 2014 .

[77]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  UNCERTAINTY ANALYSIS FOR MULTI-REGION INPUT–OUTPUT MODELS – A CASE STUDY OF THE UK'S CARBON FOOTPRINT , 2010 .

[78]  Glen P. Peters,et al.  A MULTI-REGION INPUT–OUTPUT TABLE BASED ON THE GLOBAL TRADE ANALYSIS PROJECT DATABASE (GTAP-MRIO) , 2013 .

[79]  G. Peters.  From production-based to consumption-based national emission inventories , 2008 .

[80]  T. Wiedmann.  EDITORIAL: CARBON FOOTPRINT AND INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS – AN INTRODUCTION , 2009 .

[81]  E. Dietzenbacher,et al.  An Illustrated User Guide to the World Input–Output Database: The Case of Global Automotive Production , 2015 .

[82]  E. Hertwich,et al.  CO2 embodied in international trade with implications for global climate policy. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[83]  Kjartan Steen-Olsen,et al.  Integrating ecological and water footprint accounting in a multi-regional input–output framework , 2012 .

[84]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS: THE NEXT 25 YEARS , 2013 .

[85]  C. Weber,et al.  Growth in emission transfers via international trade from 1990 to 2008 , 2011, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[86]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  AGGREGATION VERSUS DISAGGREGATION IN INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS OF THE ENVIRONMENT , 2011 .

[87]  H. S. Matthews,et al.  THE ROLE OF INPUT–OUTPUT ANALYSIS FOR THE SCREENING OF CORPORATE CARBON FOOTPRINTS , 2009 .

[88]  Joseph F. Francois,et al.  The World Input-Output Database (WIOD): Contents, Sources and Methods , 2012 .

[89]  Jennifer G. Whitfield,et al.  Carbon Footprint Reduction , 2016 .

[90]  Arnold Tukker,et al.  GLOBAL MULTIREGIONAL INPUT–OUTPUT FRAMEWORKS: AN INTRODUCTION AND OUTLOOK , 2013 .

[91]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  Consumption-based GHG emission accounting: a UK case study , 2013 .

[92]  Thomas Wiedmann,et al.  A greenhouse gas footprint analysis of UK Central Government, 1990–2008 , 2011 .

[93]  Peter Ball,et al.  Steps towards sustainable manufacturing through modelling material, energy and waste flows , 2012 .

[94]  Manfred Lenzen,et al.  Errors in Conventional and Input‐Output—based Life—Cycle Inventories , 2000 .

[95]  B. W. Ang,et al.  Multi-region input–output analysis of CO2 emissions embodied in trade: The feedback effects , 2011 .

[96]  H Scott Matthews,et al.  Categorization of Scope 3 emissions for streamlined enterprise carbon footprinting. , 2009, Environmental science & technology.

[97]  Murat Kucukvar,et al.  Sustainability assessment of U.S. manufacturing sectors: an economic input output-based frontier approach , 2013 .