A novel assessment framework for circular urban areas with its application to a Swedish municipality

IF 9.6 1区 环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
Asterios Papageorgiou, Anna Björklund, Rajib Sinha
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

As local authorities worldwide increasingly embrace the circular economy (CE) concept, it is crucial to equip decision-makers with the necessary tools to design and monitor effective urban-level circular strategies. With this study, we introduce a novel framework for assessing the urban metabolism and circularity of urban areas to support decision-making within the CE context. The framework integrates a structured dashboard of 27 CE indicators with the urban metabolic life cycle assessment approach (UM-LCA), which couples Material and Energy Flow Analysis (MEFA) with Life Cycle Assessment. We developed this framework building on insights from two prior studies, where we explored the utility of MEFA and UM-LCA as decision-support tools within the CE context, and by identifying CE indicators in the literature based on the RACER (Relevant, Acceptable, Credible, Easy, Robust) criteria. To demonstrate the applicability and utility of the framework and examine its strengths and weaknesses, we applied the framework to the Umeå urban area in Sweden. The application of the framework provided a detailed quantitative analysis of material and energy flows and environmental impacts per sector within the urban area, indicating key sectors in terms of resource use, waste generation and environmental performance. It also provided a comprehensive evaluation of Umeå's current level of CE development, highlighting areas of strength and improvement, and offered a prospective assessment of the environmental implications of potential future circular strategies. Overall, the framework proved to be a valuable tool for generating detailed insights into material and energy flows, environmental impacts and circularity, which can be particularly useful for the design, monitoring and evaluation of urban-level circular strategies. However, the application also revealed some weaknesses of the framework, including its significant data demands, complexity and limited capacity to capture social and economic aspects, suggesting areas for further research to fully unlock its potential as a decision-support tool.
一个新的评估框架的圆形城市地区,其应用于瑞典直辖市
随着世界各地的地方政府越来越多地接受循环经济(CE)概念,为决策者提供必要的工具来设计和监测有效的城市层面的循环战略至关重要。通过这项研究,我们引入了一个新的框架来评估城市代谢和城市地区的循环性,以支持在CE背景下的决策。该框架将27个CE指标的结构化仪表板与城市代谢生命周期评估方法(UM-LCA)集成在一起,该方法将物质和能量流分析(MEFA)与生命周期评估相结合。我们根据之前两项研究的见解开发了这个框架,在这两项研究中,我们探索了MEFA和UM-LCA作为CE背景下决策支持工具的效用,并根据RACER(相关、可接受、可信、简单、稳健)标准确定了文献中的CE指标。为了证明该框架的适用性和实用性,并检查其优点和缺点,我们将该框架应用于瑞典的乌梅夫城区。该框架的应用对城市地区内每个部门的物质和能源流动和环境影响进行了详细的数量分析,指出了资源利用、废物产生和环境绩效方面的关键部门。报告还全面评价了芬兰目前的环保发展水平,突出了优势和改进的领域,并对未来可能的循环战略对环境的影响进行了前瞻性评估。总体而言,该框架被证明是一种宝贵的工具,可以详细了解材料和能源流动、环境影响和循环性,这对城市一级循环战略的设计、监测和评价特别有用。然而,应用程序也揭示了该框架的一些弱点,包括其重大的数据需求,复杂性和捕捉社会和经济方面的有限能力,建议进一步研究的领域,以充分释放其作为决策支持工具的潜力。
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来源期刊
Sustainable Production and Consumption
Sustainable Production and Consumption Environmental Science-Environmental Engineering
CiteScore
17.40
自引率
7.40%
发文量
389
审稿时长
13 days
期刊介绍: Sustainable production and consumption refers to the production and utilization of goods and services in a way that benefits society, is economically viable, and has minimal environmental impact throughout its entire lifespan. Our journal is dedicated to publishing top-notch interdisciplinary research and practical studies in this emerging field. We take a distinctive approach by examining the interplay between technology, consumption patterns, and policy to identify sustainable solutions for both production and consumption systems.
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