Regional Sustainability最新文献

{"title":"Innovation in two contrasting value chains: Constraints and opportunities for adopting alternative crop production in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta","authors":"Sang Thanh Le ,&nbsp;Nhu Huynh Mao ,&nbsp;Paul Kristiansen ,&nbsp;Michael Coleman","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100198","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100198","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Agricultural production (especially intensive rice production) is a primary income source for over 2.0×10⁷ people in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta. However, adverse climate change impacts, socio-economic change, and high dependence on farm inputs for intensive production constrain the longer-term sustainability of rice systems. Government and agribusiness actors are encouraging more farmers to grow non-rice crops and supporting the upscaling of alternative crops to paddy rice. We used a qualitative approach to investigate the value chain characteristics, as well as constraints and opportunities of alternative crops via two case studies (baby corn and honeydew melon) in An Giang and Hau Giang provinces, Vietnam. Data collection involved focus group discussions with local farmers and interviews with farmers and industry experts. Thematic analysis was used to compile the findings, and the results were validated with local government staff. The baby corn value chain featured on-going and stable market demand (including value-addition) and better vertical coordination (e.g., written contracts and financial support). The honeydew melon value chain featured positive relationships between farmers and traders despite less-developed vertical coordination. There are opportunities for value chain engagement through product quality certification, value-addition, and accessing high-value domestic and export markets. However, farmers require crop-specific and generic support from private and public sectors. Increased labour requirements and limited access to finance and credit limit value chain participation. Upscaling and marketing alternative crops can enhance farmer profitability and support non-farming agricultural business establishment, economic growth, and community development. Efficient value chains will be critical to ensure the adoption of alternative crops and development of crop-specific agribusiness models. These findings can inform policy-makers and change facilitators in designing targeted interventions to support the adoption of alternative crops in the study area as well as in Vietnam and globally.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100198"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143705791","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Qualitative assessment of the impact of waste littering and dumping on surface water quality in Nigeria","authors":"Gloria Fayomi ,&nbsp;Ednah Onyari ,&nbsp;Onyeka Nkwonta","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100194","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100194","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Water resources are vital for all living beings and should be managed properly to ensure the safety and well-being of humankind. Surface water bodies are constantly faced with serious contamination risks generated primarily by human activities and urbanization. The problem of waste littering and dumping in developing countries like Nigeria is increasingly affecting environmental resources such as air and water. Several studies have revealed alarming levels of heavy metals that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) standards. Plastic waste represents a substantial portion of litter, affecting water quality. Pollution results in the depletion of aquatic ecosystems and an increase in water-related diseases. This review aims to assess the impact of waste littering and dumping on surface water quality in Nigeria. In this review, the findings of various studies on surface water bodies in Nigeria, particularly those under the influence of urbanization and waste disposal, were compiled. This review compared numerous physical and chemical parameters like pH, dissolved oxygen, and heavy metals, and microbiological properties such as total coliforms. The water quality index (WQI) was also computed in these studies to ascertain the suitability of the water samples for human consumption. Review results showed that numerous water bodies in Nigeria have significantly diverse water quality levels, with some samples meeting or exceeding the WHO guidelines for microbiological, chemical, and physical characteristics. Notably, levels of heavy metals, turbidity, and pH frequently exceeded permissible limits, pointing to contamination from agricultural and industrial sources. The WQI results for multiple locations revealed that the majority of surface water sources were classified as “bad” to “very bad”, meaning they were unfit for human consumption. The results emphasized the critical need for immediate action to prevent further harm and deterioration of surface water bodies in Nigeria. Recommendations include strengthening waste management policies, promoting recycling initiatives, fostering collaborations among stakeholders, developing littering penalties and enforcing fines to curb the challenge, and raising educational awareness from the primary level. This review emphasizes the need for proactive measures to protect the environment and surface water quality in Nigeria.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100194"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143706437","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Quantifying the impacts of land use/land cover changes on ecosystem service values in the upper Gilgel Abbay watershed, Ethiopia","authors":"Wassie Abuhay Aschenefe ,&nbsp;Temesgen Gashaw Tarekegn ,&nbsp;Betelhem Fetene Admas ,&nbsp;Solomon Mulu Tafere","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100197","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100197","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Human well-being and livelihoods depend on natural ecosystem services (ESs). Following the increment of population, ESs have been deteriorated over time. Ultimately, land use/land cover (LULC) changes have a profound impact on the change of ecosystem. The primary goal of this study is to determine the impacts of LULC changes on ecosystem service values (ESVs) in the upper Gilgel Abbay watershed, Ethiopia. Changes in LULC types were studied using three Landsat images representing 1986, 2003, and 2021. The Landsat images were classified using a supervised image classification technique in Earth Resources Data Analysis System (ERDAS) Imagine 2014. We classified ESs in this study into four categories (including provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural services) based on global ES classification scheme. The adjusted ESV coefficient benefit approach was employed to measure the impacts of LULC changes on ESVs. Five LULC types were identified in this study, including cultivated land, forest, shrubland, grassland, and water body. The result revealed that the area of cultivated land accounted for 64.50%, 71.50%, and 61.50% of the total area in 1986, 2003, and 2021, respectively. The percentage of the total area covered by forest was 9.50%, 5.90%, and 14.80% in 1986, 2003, and 2021, respectively. Result revealed that the total ESV decreased from 7.42×10⁷ to 6.44×10⁷ USD between 1986 and 2003. This is due to the expansion of cultivated land at the expense of forest and shrubland. However, the total ESV increased from 6.44×10⁷ to 7.76×10⁷ USD during 2003–2021, because of the increment of forest and shrubland. The expansion of cultivated land and the reductions of forest and shrubland reduced most individual ESs during 1986–2003. Nevertheless, the increase in forest and shrubland at the expense of cultivated land enhanced many ESs during 2003–2021. Therefore, the findings suggest that appropriate land use practices should be scaled-up to sustainably maintain ESs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100197"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143706440","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sustainable smart city and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): A review","authors":"Z. R. M. Abdullah Kaiser ,&nbsp;Apu Deb","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100193","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100193","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The rapid urbanization and increasing challenges are faced by cities globally, including climate change, population growth, and resource constraints. Sustainable smart city (also referred to as “smart sustainable city”) can offer innovative solutions by integrating advanced technologies to build smarter, greener, and more livable urban environments with significant benefits. Using the Web of Science (WoS) database, this study examined: (i) the mainstream approaches and current research trends in the literature of sustainable smart city; (ii) the extent to which the research of sustainable smart city aligns with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); (iii) the current topics and collaboration patterns in sustainable smart city research; and (iv) the potential opportunities for future research on the sustainable smart city field. The findings indicated that research on sustainable smart city began in 2010 and gained significant momentum in 2013, with China leading, followed by Italy and Spain. Moreover, 59.00% of the selected publications on the research of sustainable smart city focus on SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). Bibliometric analysis outcome revealed that artificial intelligence (AI), big data, machine learning, and deep learning are emerging research fields. The terms smart city, smart cities, and sustainability emerged as the top three co-occurring keywords with the highest link strength, followed by frequently co-occurring keywords such as AI, innovation, big data, urban governance, resilience, machine learning, and Internet of Things (IoT). The clustering results indicated that current studies explored the theoretical foundation, challenges, and future prospects of sustainable smart city, with an emphasis on sustainability. To further support urban sustainability and the attainment of SDGs, the future research of sustainable smart city should explore the application and implications of AI and big data on urban development including cybersecurity and governance challenges.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100193"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143706436","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Cost and benefit analysis of Climate-Smart Agriculture interventions in the dryland farming systems of northern Ghana","authors":"Felix KPENEKUU ,&nbsp;Philip ANTWI-AGYEI ,&nbsp;Fred NIMOH ,&nbsp;Andrew DOUGILL ,&nbsp;Albert BANUNLE ,&nbsp;Jonathan ATTA-AIDOO ,&nbsp;Frank BAFFOUR-ATA ,&nbsp;Thomas Peprah AGYEKUM ,&nbsp;Godfred ADDAI ,&nbsp;Lawrence GUODAAR","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100196","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100196","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There is a need for more focus in understanding the economic benefits of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) interventions, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where extreme climate events are significantly affecting agriculture and rural livelihoods. This study used the Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR), and payback period to evaluate the economic viability of the adopted CSA interventions in the three villages (Doggoh, Jeffiri, and Wulling) of the dryland farming systems of northern Ghana, where CSA interventions were mostly practiced. Data were collected from 161 farm households by the questionnaire survey. The results showed that CSA interventions including livestock-crop integration, mixed cropping, crop rotation, nutrient integration, and tie ridging enhanced crop yield and the household income of smallholder farmers. The five CSA interventions selected by smallholders were in the following order of priority: livestock-crop integration (BCR=2.87), mixed cropping (BCR=2.54), crop rotation (BCR=2.24), nutrient integration (BCR=1.98), and tie ridging (BCR=1.42). Results further showed that livestock-crop integration was the most profitable CSA intervention even under a pessimistic assumption with a long payback period of 5.00 a. Moreover, this study indicated that the implementation of CSA interventions, on average, was relatively profitable and had a nominal financial risk for smallholder farmers. Understanding the economic viability of CSA interventions will help in decision-making process toward selecting the right CSA interventions for resilience development.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100196"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143706439","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Green hydrogen production from wind energy in Far Eastern Federal District (FEFD), the Russian Federation","authors":"Mihail Demidionov","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100199","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100199","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There is a gradual increase in the proportion of renewable energy sources. Green hydrogen has the potential to become one of the major energy carriers in the future. The Russian Federation, in partnership with countries in the Asia-Pacific region and especially China, has the potential to play a significant role in green hydrogen market. This study assessed the potential of developing green hydrogen energy based on wind power in the Far Eastern Federal District (FEFD) of the Russian Federation. Empirical wind speed data were collected from 20 meteorological stations in 4 regions (Sakhalinskaya Oblast’, Primorskiy Krai, Khabarovskiy Krai, and Amurskaya Oblast’) of the FEFD. The Weibull distribution was used to predict the potential of green hydrogen production. Five different methods (Empirical Method of Justus (EMJ), Empirical Method of Lysen (EML), Maximum Likelihood Method (MLE), Power Density Method (PDM), and Median and Quartiles Method (MQM)) were used to determine the parameters (scape factor and scale factor) of the Weibull distribution. We calculated the total electricity generation potential based on the technical specifications of the three wind turbines: Senvion 6150 onshore, H165-4.0 MW, and Vestas V150-4.2 MW. The results showed that Vladivostok, Pogibi, Ilyinskiy, Yuzhno-Kuril’sk, Severo-Kuril’sk, Kholmsk, and Okha stations had the higher potential of green hydrogen production, of which Vladivostok exhibited the highest potential of green hydrogen production using the wind turbine of H165-4.0 MW, up to 2.56×10⁵ kg/a. In terms of economic analysis, the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) values of lower than 4.00 USD/kg were obtained at Yuzhno-Kuril’sk, Ilyinskiy, Pogibi, and Vladivostok stations using the wind turbine of H165-4.0 MW, with the values of 3.54, 3.50, 3.24, and 2.55 USD/kg, respectively. This study concluded that the FEFD possesses significant potential in the production of green hydrogen and, with appropriate investment, has the potential to become a significant hub for green hydrogen trading in the Asia-Pacific region.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100199"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143705792","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Unlocking climate change resilience: socioeconomic factors shaping smallholder farmers’ perceptions and adaptation strategies in Mediterranean and Sub-Saharan Africa regions","authors":"Osama Ahmed ,&nbsp;Mourad Faiz ,&nbsp;Laamari Abdelali ,&nbsp;Safwa Khoali ,&nbsp;Cataldo Pulvent ,&nbsp;Sameh Mohamed ,&nbsp;Mame Samba Mbaye ,&nbsp;Thomas Glauben","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100195","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2025.100195","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Climate change poses substantial challenges to agricultural productivity and sustainability, particularly in Mediterranean and Sub-Saharan Africa regions. Local smallholder farmers’ adaptation strategies to climate change are crucial for mitigating these impacts. Therefore, this study investigated the socioeconomic factors influencing smallholder farmers’ perceptions and adaptation strategies to climate change in four countries (Morocco, Egypt, Italy, and Senegal) of Mediterranean and Sub-Saharan Africa regions using a binary logistic regression (BLR) model. The results indicated that educational level, farming experience, agricultural income, farm size, participation in agricultural workshops, and training in Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) significantly impacted smallholder farmers’ perceptions and adaptation strategies to climate change (such as smallholder farmers adopting drought-tolerant crops). Higher educational level was linked to the greater possibility of smallholder farmers adopting drought-tolerant crops in Italy and Egypt, while gaps in rural education limited the possibility of smallholder farmers adopting drought-tolerant crops in Morocco and Senegal. Farming experience and agricultural income also enhanced the possibility of smallholder farmers adopting drought-tolerant crops, with notable variations across countries due to systemic barriers such as limited infrastructure in Senegal. Larger farm size and participation in agricultural workshops further improved the possibility of smallholder farmers adopting drought-tolerant crops, particularly in Morocco and Egypt. The findings highlighted the importance of tailored interventions and policy measures to support smallholder farmers in effectively responding to the challenges of climate change under diverse agricultural contexts. By understanding the specific needs and circumstances of smallholder farmers in these countries, policymakers can develop more effective adaptation strategies to enhance agricultural resilience and sustainability under the context of climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":"Article 100195"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143706438","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evolutionary characteristics of export trade network in the Arctic region","authors":"Xing Ma ,&nbsp;Wenli Qiang ,&nbsp;Shijin Wang ,&nbsp;Jiayi Liu ,&nbsp;Arunima Malik ,&nbsp;Mengyu Li ,&nbsp;Xiang Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2024.100176","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2024.100176","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The economic potential induced by environmental changes in the Arctic region garnered substantial interest, which positions Arctic trade as a crucial indicator in forecasting the impacts of climate change on the global economy. Nevertheless, attention devoted to the evolving dynamics of trade in the Arctic region remains scarce. In this study, we constructed export trade network in the Arctic region (including Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, the Canadian Arctic, the Russian Arctic, Alaska State of the USA, and Greenland) from 1990 to 2019 and analyzed its topology and evolutionary characteristics through complex network theory. We used a structural entropy index based on the distribution of the number of trading partners and the degree of trade concentration to assess export diversity, while we also utilized a revealed comparative advantage index to evaluate product export competitiveness using the share of trade volume of each type of product. The results indicate that the total export trade in the Arctic region increased by 53.4% during 1990–2019, with the most significant growth observed in the exports of chemical products and mineral fuels. The increasing complexity of trade network in the Arctic region resulted in the region’s export destinations no longer being concentrated on a few major countries and regions. The proportion of exports from the Arctic region to Europe decreased by 13.5%, while the proportion of exports from the Arctic region to Asia and North America increased by 6.8% and 3.1%, respectively. The Arctic region exhibited clear distinctions in the range of flows of different products, and its export trade was becoming increasingly diversified. Although differences in comparative advantages between products within individual countries or regions have narrowed, substantial gaps persist. The findings of this study can enhance the comprehensive understanding of the significance and function of Arctic trade activities within the global economy, providing a scientific basis for addressing the associated challenges and opportunities in the context of climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"5 4","pages":"Article 100176"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141807","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Efficiency and sustainability of the tourism industry in Latin America","authors":"Clara Inés Pardo Martínez ,&nbsp;Alexander Cotte Poveda","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2024.100178","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2024.100178","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The tourism industry is economically very important. According to the World Travel Tourism Council, in 2019, the tourism industry accounted for a quarter of all new jobs created worldwide, 10.3% of all jobs, and 9.6×10¹² USD of the global gross domestic product. This study aimed to calculate the tourism efficiency index for different Latin American countries from 2010 to 2021 using data envelopment analysis, which analyzes the relationships between input variables (including the number of employees in the tourism industry and the number of hotel-type establishments) and output variables (including tourism expenditures in other countries and public social expenditures in recreation and culture per capita). Additionally, this study aimed to identify the countries with greater tourism development and the factors that may affect the development of the tourism industry through the stochastic frontier production function. The results of the tourism efficiency index for Central America (including Costa Rica, Dominica, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, and Panama) and South America (including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay) exhibited different trends. However, after the global health crisis, the tourism industry recovered, showing new opportunities to promote sustainability. The results of the stochastic frontier production function demonstrated that countries with higher levels of inbound and outbound tourism, contribution of tourism to the economy, natural resources, and literacy rate exhibited more efficient tourism industry, whereas countries with higher pollution levels exhibited less efficient tourism industry. The findings of this study could allow us to formulate suitable public policies to promote tourism, maintain natural resources, and diversify these sectors with more inclusive programmes that can facilitate growth and benefit vulnerable communities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"5 4","pages":"Article 100178"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143141685","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Encouraging circular economy and sustainable environmental practices by addressing waste management and biomass energy production","authors":"Nazim Forid Islam ,&nbsp;Bhoirob Gogoi ,&nbsp;Rimon Saikia ,&nbsp;Balal Yousaf ,&nbsp;Mahesh Narayan ,&nbsp;Hemen Sarma","doi":"10.1016/j.regsus.2024.100174","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.regsus.2024.100174","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The current linear economy assumes abundant, easily accessible, and cost-effective natural resources. However, this assumption is unsustainable, especially considering the world’s current trajectory exceeding the Earth’s ecological limits. In contrast, circular economy (CE) reduces wastes and improves resource efficiency, making them a more sustainable alternative to the dominant linear model. Biomass energy generated from agricultural leftovers, forestry wastes, and municipal trash provides a renewable substitute for fossil fuels. This reduces greenhouse gas emissions and improves energy security. Proper waste management, including trash reduction, recycling, and innovative waste-to-energy technology, reduces the burden on landfills and incineration and creates renewable energy from materials that would otherwise go to waste. Although integrating these techniques is consistent with the CE’s resource efficiency and waste minimization principles, it requires addressing environmental, technical, and socioeconomic challenges. Given the pressing global issues, transitioning to a CE and implementing sustainable environmental practices are crucial to mitigate the current waste management crisis. The aim of this study is to emphasize the viability of biomass as a source of sustainable energy, the necessity of comprehensive strategies that prioritize ecological sustainability, community involvement, and innovation to achieve a circular principle based future, and the potential obstacles to the implementation of sustainable environmental practices. This study will aid in implementing CE practices to accomplish the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and landfill loads. Beyond environmental benefits, it can also bring economic, social, and health improvements. Furthermore, this study will assist societies in addressing global issues, such as resource scarcity, pollution, and climate change, as well as transitioning to a more sustainable and resilient future.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":34395,"journal":{"name":"Regional Sustainability","volume":"5 4","pages":"Article 100174"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143142113","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}