Environment, Development and Sustainability最新文献

{"title":"ESG and firm operational efficiency: evidence from Chinese listed companies","authors":"Bin Wang,&nbsp;Chenchen Wei,&nbsp;Longmei Shi,&nbsp;Xiaoqiang Cheng,&nbsp;Xueqin Shi","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05865-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10668-024-05865-y","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper aims at exploring whether and how environment, social responsibility, and corporate governance (ESG) affects firm operating efficiency (FOE). The potential moderating role of cash flow has also been studied in an effort to disentangle its relationships in this context. By using data on A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2020 in China, we find that a good ESG performance has a significantly positive impact on FOE. After changing the measurement of FOE, using Huazheng ESG performance and a series of stability tests such as endogenous tests, the results are still robust. Meanwhile, we find that the primary driver of the positive impact of ESG on FOE lies in its capacity to enhance economies of scale. In addition, we also find that ESG has a more pronounced effect on FOE for non-manufacturing enterprises and privately-owned enterprises. These results suggest that ESG has become an effective way to improve FOE. Exploring the impact of ESG performance on corporate operational efficiency is of significant practical significance for getting rid of corporate development difficulties, promoting good business operation, advancing the upgrading of the industrial structure of the industry, and ultimately realizing the efficient and steady growth of the industry as a whole.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"27 1","pages":"681 - 714"},"PeriodicalIF":4.7,"publicationDate":"2025-01-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143362094","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Determination of eco-efficiency and optimization of input utilization in hazelnut production of Türkiye","authors":"Uğur Başer","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05836-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10668-024-05836-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The heavy reliance on input use in hazelnut production not only reduces economic efficiency but also threatens environmental sustainability, highlighting the need for improved input management and reduced ecological impact. This study aimed to assess the eco-efficiency of hazelnut farms using an input-oriented inverse DEA approach, determine the optimal input levels, and identify the factors contributing to eco-inefficiency through truncated regression analysis. Primary data were collected from 121 hazelnut farms through face-to-face interviews in the provinces of Giresun, Ordu, and Samsun in Türkiye. The inverse DEA method was used to evaluate eco-efficiency, while the truncated regression model was used to identify factors contributing to eco-inefficiency. The results revealed that the highest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in hazelnut production were caused by pesticides, contributing 153.58 kg CO_2-eq of GHG emissions per hectare. This was followed by manure at 132.53 kg CO_2-eq per hectare, chemical fertilizer at 78.44 kg CO_2-eq per hectare, and diesel fuel at 72.66 kg CO_2-eq per hectare. The average eco-efficiency score was calculated to be 82.8%, meaning that inputs could be reduced by 17.2% without affecting output. Pesticide use accounted for 24.83% of the total emissions, while manure contributed 21.42%, making them the largest sources of emissions. In hazelnut production, labor input was the most over-utilized resource, accounting for 12.40% of the total, followed by land size at 11.32% and other inputs at 10.53%. The eco-inefficiency model results showed that farming experience was statistically significant at the 10% level, agricultural insurance at the 5% level, and social security at the 1% level. The inefficient use of resources has a negative impact on both the economy and the environment. Therefore, implementing policies that promote the efficient use of inputs will significantly enhance the eco-efficiency of hazelnut production in Türkiye.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"27 1","pages":"665 - 680"},"PeriodicalIF":4.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143362154","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Correction: Influence of responsible leadership on employee green behavior: the role of green role identity and green human resource management","authors":"Zhiyong Han,&nbsp;Mingxia Chen,&nbsp;Chuanyun Jiang","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05845-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10668-024-05845-2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"27 2","pages":"3003 - 3003"},"PeriodicalIF":4.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143404196","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Influence of responsible leadership on employee green behavior: the role of green role identity and green human resource management","authors":"Zhiyong Han,&nbsp;Mingxia Chen,&nbsp;Chuanyun Jiang","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05752-6","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10668-024-05752-6","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Drawing upon role identity theory and situational strength theory, this paper investigates the mechanisms that connect employees’ green activities with responsible leadership. Using information from a survey of 260 workers across multiple enterprises in Anhui Province, this study reveals that responsible leadership enhances employees’ green role identity, subsequently motivating them to adopt green practices. Furthermore, the association between employees’ green behaviors and responsible leadership is mediated by green role identity. Higher levels of green human resource management reinforce the favorable association between employees’ green behaviors and their green role identity, while green human resource management moderates this relationship. Furthermore, the association between responsible leadership and employees’ green actions is mediated by green role identity, which is moderated by green human resource management. The mediation is amplified at higher levels of green human resource management. This paper deepens our comprehension of the mechanisms and boundaries conditions of responsible leadership, offering valuable insights for enhancing organizational environmental management and guiding employee green behaviors.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"27 2","pages":"2985 - 3001"},"PeriodicalIF":4.7,"publicationDate":"2024-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143404174","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessing the environmental performance of a university campus using a life cycle assessment approach","authors":"Şenay Çetin Doğruparmak,&nbsp;Simge Çankaya,&nbsp;Murat Efgan Kibar,&nbsp;Beyhan Pekey","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05730-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10668-024-05730-y","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Universities undertake critical duties in the development of countries and increasing the level of welfare. Therefore, to achieve sustainable development goals, it is important that they focus their efforts on sustainable campus practices and contribution to society. In this work, organizational life cycle assessment was conducted to identify major environmental aspects and the most impactful processes related to the education and research activities of Kocaeli University. Life cycle impact assessment was performed by EF 3.0 method to evaluate sixteen environmental impact categories and they were comparatively assessed for the two scenarios: present situation (PS) and alternative scenario (AS—which includes increasing renewable energy rate in electricity generation). The major environmental aspects were identified as climate change and use of fossil resources. They constituted approximately 41% and 20% of overall environmental burden of the university campus for the year of 2022; respectively. Considering the processes related to the university campus activities, electricity consumption and heating with natural gas were determined as the most impactful processes which accounted for approximately 80% of the overall environmental burden. On the contrary, treatment of wastewater in the biological wastewater treatment plant located on the university campus ensured 6% environmental saving on overall environmental burden. Comparing two scenarios, it was determined that all impact categories decreased in AS compared with PS; except from the impact category for mineral and metal resource use. According to the uncertainty analysis, AS performed better than PS by 60% of the iterations for overall environmental burden.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"27 1","pages":"645 - 664"},"PeriodicalIF":4.7,"publicationDate":"2024-11-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143362028","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Research on the relationship between environmental governance pressure and green innovation","authors":"Wen Yu Tan, Lingjun Guo, Wenhua Wang","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05634-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-024-05634-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In the context of building an ecological civilization, green innovation has become a key pathway to achieving sustainable development. Environmental governance pressure, as an external driving force, compels enterprises to assume environmental responsibilities and serves as a critical driver of green innovation. However, this relationship remains underexplored in academic research. Based on this, this study investigates the impact of environmental governance pressure on green innovation, providing empirical support for the development of green strategies. Analyzing provincial panel data from China (2007–2021) using spatial econometric models, we explore the intricate mechanisms by which environmental governance pressure influences green innovation and how these effects vary between coastal and inland regions. The findings present a comprehensive picture: ① Environmental governance pressure significantly stimulates green innovation across Chinese provinces; ② Compared to inland regions, coastal areas experience a more pronounced positive effect; ③ There is a threshold effect, where moderate environmental regulation amplifies the positive impact of governance pressure on green innovation; ④ Green credit and innovation investment partially mediate the relationship between governance pressure and green innovation. These findings collectively enhance our understanding of how environmental governance pressure guides and stimulates the trajectory of green innovation.</p>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"46 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142758683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of green synthesized silver nanoparticles on growth and physiological responses of pearl millet under salinity stress","authors":"Zakir Ullah,&nbsp;Syed Inzimam Ul Haq,&nbsp;Abd Ullah,&nbsp;Muhammad Ahsan Asghar,&nbsp;Mahmoud F. Seleiman,&nbsp;Khansa Saleem,&nbsp;Fanjiang Zeng,&nbsp;Noor Us Sama,&nbsp;Khalid Kamran,&nbsp;Sheraz Ahmad","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05453-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10668-024-05453-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Agricultural production and food security are hindered by abiotic stress in plants. Consequently, novel approaches are needed to overcome these problems and achieve sustainability. Crop production has been demonstrated to be improved by nanoparticles under several biotic and abiotic stress conditions. This experiment examined the effect of different concentrations of green synthesized silver nanoparticles AgNPs (15, 25, 35, 45, and 55 ppm) on the growth and physiological responses of pearl millet subjected to NaCl stress levels (50, 75, 100, 125, and 150 mM); (3) Results: In the current research, the NaCl stress levels significantly reduced the growth metrics (shoot length, root length, shoot fresh and dry weight, and root fresh and dry weight) chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and soluble protein, compared to control. Contrary to this, all stress levels induced an increase in osmolytes (soluble sugars and proline) and antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase. It is likely that the diminished growth metrics of NaCl-treated seedlings are due to the increased effort put forth in osmotic adjustment and antioxidant defense mechanisms to counteract reactive oxygen species and oxidative stress. The foliar spray of AgNPs, however, further enhanced osmotic and O₂^--H₂O₂ scavenging mechanisms in NaCl stressed seedlings to reduce the oxidative stress damages, resulting in improved growth. Overall, AgNPs application improved the growth metric, chlorophyll pigments, osmolytes, and antioxidant mechanism of salt-stressed seedlings in a dose-additive manner. However, further testing of AgNPs is required with pearl millet and other cereals in the field to validate these results.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"27 1","pages":"625 - 644"},"PeriodicalIF":4.7,"publicationDate":"2024-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143361739","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Analyzing the effects of socioeconomic, natural and landscape factors on PM2.5 concentrations from a spatial perspective","authors":"Jun Song, Chunlin Li, Yuanman Hu, Zaiping Xiong, Lujia Zhao, Zhenxing Li","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05425-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-024-05425-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p>PM_2.5, as a major air pollutant, remains unclear as to what factors influence it and the magnitude of the influence. Ten influencing factors, including socioeconomic, natural and landscape indicators, were chosen, and the effects of these factors on PM_2.5 concentration was examined through Pearson correlation analysis and the boosted regression tree model. The findings indicate that PM_2.5 concentration was most affected by GDP, NDVI and precipitation. The GDP imposed the most notable positive effect in China. The temperature imposed the greatest negative effect in East China. Northeast, North and Northwest China were the most negatively affected by the NDVI. Southwest and South-Central China were the most negatively affected by the relative humidity. More than half of the areas were affected by the main positive effects of GDP and more than a third of the areas were affected by the main negative effects of RH. This study systematically studied the correlations between PM_2.5 concentrations and their influencing factors from a spatial perspective over a long time series. The findings could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing PM_2.5 and offer a theoretical basis for zonal PM_2.5 pollution management.</p>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142251955","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Addressing the contradiction between water supply and demand: a study on multi-objective regional water resources optimization allocation","authors":"Jingyi Chu, Zhaocai Wang, Xiaoguang Bao, Zhiyuan Yao, Xuefei Cui","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05214-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-024-05214-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As a result of economic development, population growth, accelerated urbanization and the frequent occurrence of extreme weather events, the contradiction between the supply and demand for water resources between regions has become increasingly acute. In order to solve the problem of regional water shortage and irrational utilization, the optimal allocation of water resources has become one of the research hotspots in recent years. In this study, firstly a multi-objective integrated allocation model of regional water resources is constructed by introducing social, economic, and environmental objective functions to address the complex uncertainties in the water resources system. Secondly, the standard whale algorithm is optimized and improved by introducing chaotic population initialization, chaotic convergence factor, adaptive Lévy flight and improved positive cosine mechanism. The model parameters, including the 2025 water resource demand and supply, pollutant discharge content, and unit water supply cost coefficients, are set by consulting the Shanxi Water Resources Bulletin 2022, the Shanxi Provincial Department of Water Resources, and the Report on the Work of the Shanxi Provincial Government 2023. Subsequently, the improved whale algorithm is utilized for the optimization of the predicted water resources for various target years in the future in the lower reaches of the Fen River in Shanxi Province, China. This ultimately yields optimized allocation results independently from both supply and demand sides. The experimental results demonstrate that the framework for water resource optimization using the improved whale algorithm is feasible, providing a reference scheme for regional multi-objective water resource optimization. Finally, the proposed policy recommendations emphasize the necessity of strengthening water diversion planning and management, promoting virtual water and water-saving initiatives, and highlighting water recycling and environmental protection in order to ensure the sustainable allocation of water resources in the downstream Fen River basin.</p>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"39 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142251956","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of single and dual crop coefficients for drip-irrigated broccoli using weighing type field lysimeters in semi-arid environment","authors":"Jitendra Rajput, Man Singh, K. Lal, Manoj Khanna, A. Sarangi, J. Mukherjee, Shrawan Singh, Dimple","doi":"10.1007/s10668-024-05416-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-024-05416-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Estimating crop evapotranspiration is critical in effective planning and management of irrigation systems. Accurate estimation of crop water use may aid in achieving economic and environmental benefits by optimizing water resources. Thus, the current investigation aimed to quantify crop evapotranspiration (ET_c) &amp; develop single (K_c) and dual crop coefficients for <i>Rabi</i> broccoli. Thus, a 2 years field study was conducted during <i>Rabi</i> 2016–17 and 2017–18 by employing weighing type field lysimeter in a semi-arid climatic condition. Results revealed that, seasonal broccoli ET_c was 149 mm (mm) and 144 mm during 2016–2017 and 2017–2018 crop periods, respectively. The K_c values during <i>Rabi</i> 2016–17 were 0.68, 0.84, 1.04, and 0.94 for initial stage (IS), development stage (DS), mid-season stage (MS), and late season stage (LS), respectively. Similarly, in 2017–18, the K_c was found to be 0.67, 0.82, 1.03, and 0.93 during IS, DS, MS, and LS, respectively. In dual crop coefficient approach, the basal crop coefficient (K_cb) was 0.30, 0.66, 0.97 and 0.84 and the soil evaporation coefficient (K_e) was 0.42, 0.23, 0.18 and 0.23 for IS, DS, MS, and LS, respectively. While, during <i>Rabi</i> 2017–18, the K_cb was 0.30, 0.65, 0.98 and 0.85 and K_e found to be 0.41, 0.23, 0.18 and 0.22 for IS, DS, MS and LS, respectively. Study found that the developed crop coefficients were lesser than the food and agriculture organization (FAO) values and thus the precise crop water estimation can be possible utilizing the developed coefficients in the semi-arid climate. The developed regional broccoli crop coefficients may be utilized to improve water productivity in semi-arid environments through meticulous irrigation scheduling. The developed technological knowledge would lead to saving of precious irrigation water with optimal crop production and have environmental benefits by reducing the irrigation water need.</p><h3 data-test=\"abstract-sub-heading\">Graphical abstract</h3>","PeriodicalId":540,"journal":{"name":"Environment, Development and Sustainability","volume":"5 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2024-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142251958","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}