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Keyword = climate change
Total – 5 articles
Total 5; currently 1 – 5.
Article26 August 2022
Stephen K. Wegren
Although Russia’s grain growing regions have experienced episodic droughts, the financial impact of climate change has to date been modest when measured in terms of value of production lost. As industrial agriculture continues to emit greenhouse
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Although Russia’s grain growing regions have experienced episodic droughts, the financial impact of climate change has to date been modest when measured in terms of value of production lost. As industrial agriculture continues to emit greenhouse gases, the impact of climate change will intensify, making Russia’s southern regions drier and hotter, and potentially forcing a structural shift in production northward, an event that will lead to lower yields and grain output. The sustainable sector in Russia’s agricultural system is not able to compensate for lower grain output in the south, nor is it able to feed the nation or ensure food security across the full spectrum of commodities that consumers expect. The prospect of Russia as a declining grain power impacts the dozens of nations that import Russian grain, most notably authoritarian regimes in the Middle East.
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Highlights of SustainabilityVolume 1, Issue 3 (2022)pp. 188–201
Article18 August 2022
Mohammad Valipour, Helaleh Khoshkam, Sayed M. Bateni and Essam Heggy
The water crisis is still a major issue in Qatar. Seawater desalination has been strongly implemented in the Persian Gulf region. However, it is costly and there is corrosion in piping materials and other equipment. Hence
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The water crisis is still a major issue in Qatar. Seawater desalination has been strongly implemented in the Persian Gulf region. However, it is costly and there is corrosion in piping materials and other equipment. Hence, there is a vital need to detect groundwater resources in Qatar. Various factors affect the variability of groundwater in Qatar including hydrogeological aspects, climate change, drawdown and abstraction, rainwater harvesting, desertification, and population growth. In this study, we employ the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) Land Data Assimilation System (FLDAS) to monitor annual variations of soil moisture (SM) in the depth of 1–2 m (as an indicator of groundwater) and rainfall flux (RF) from 1982 to 2019. The results show that SM and RF anomalies were positive from 1982 to 2000 (except 1992). In contrast, these anomalies became negative during 2001–2019 (expect 2001 and 2018), implying the drawdown of groundwater resources. Drier years (i.e., negative RF anomaly) in the recent 19 years (2001–2019) reduced SM and led to a negative SM anomaly. The Mukaynis and Wadi Jallal regions (located in Al Rayyan and Al Wakrah municipalities, respectively) had the highest RF and SM from 1982 to 2019. The center-pivot irrigation systems close to the Mukaynis and Wadi Jallal regions indicate their accessibility to groundwater resources in Qatar. Moreover, these regions have the lowest risk of salinization and groundwater vulnerability. In addition, annual trends of groundwater storage (GWS) retrieved from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) from 2003 to 2019 have been presented. This study is beneficial for detecting and monitoring groundwater resources for the sustainable management of water resources in arid environments.
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Highlights of SustainabilityVolume 1, Issue 3 (2022)pp. 171–187
Article7 July 2022
Ogenis Brilhante and Julia Skinner
This paper uses the IHS Green City Conceptual Framework (IHS-GCCF) to present and discuss the development and application of a tool to measure Environmental Performance (EP) over time applied to ten Asian cities and a method
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This paper uses the IHS Green City Conceptual Framework (IHS-GCCF) to present and discuss the development and application of a tool to measure Environmental Performance (EP) over time applied to ten Asian cities and a method using these results to implement a Green City Action Plan (GCAP) applied to the city of Manila. The tool measures EP over time and helps to explain possible factors contributing to the variation of the EPs in the studied time. The GCAP uses the EP results to develop a green city action plan to improve the current EP for a given period. Both tool and method fulfil gaps found in the green city literature, contain innovative approaches, and help cities to measure and plan improvements in their current EP. By applying the EP tool to ten Asian cities in two periods (2007–2009 and 2015–2018), the paper shows that Singapore and Hong Kong had the highest EPs and Bangalore had the lowest. Implementation of water management and climate change strategies are some factors explaining the improvement in Hong Kong’s EP. A strong increase in population size is behind the EP reduction in Bangalore. The Manila GCAP proposes to improve the current EP of the city from 15.43 to 17.41 in twelve years.
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Highlights of SustainabilityVolume 1, Issue 3 (2022)pp. 113–128
Short Note2 June 2022
James A. Dyer and Raymond L. Desjardins
The Carbon Footprint (CF) of agriculture must be substantially reduced to help avoid catastrophic climate change. This paper examines the ratio of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions to protein as an indicator of the CF of the
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The Carbon Footprint (CF) of agriculture must be substantially reduced to help avoid catastrophic climate change. This paper examines the ratio of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions to protein as an indicator of the CF of the major Canadian livestock commodities using previously published results. The GHG emissions for these commodities were estimated with a spreadsheet model that accounted for all three GHGs, the complete life cycles of each livestock type and the livestock interactions with the agricultural land base. The indicator results reviewed here included the responses to livestock types and diets, livestock versus plant protein sources, spatial scales and geographic differences. The sensitivity of the results shown suggest that GHG-protein ratios could provide valuable guidance for producers and consumers to reduce their GHG emissions. For example, diverting feed grains from beef feedlots to hog production would substantially reduce the CF of red meat, although still not as low as the CF of poultry products. The complete proteins derived from pulses have much lower CF values than all livestock products.
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Highlights of SustainabilityVolume 1, Issue 2 (2022)pp. 105–112
Short Note20 September 2021
Chamila Roshani Perera and Lester W. Johnson
This paper argues that the strongly established connection between identity and consumer behaviour may not be necessarily applicable in examining environmentally conscious behaviour through an identity lens due to several other factors that may especially influence
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This paper argues that the strongly established connection between identity and consumer behaviour may not be necessarily applicable in examining environmentally conscious behaviour through an identity lens due to several other factors that may especially influence environmental identity formation; (1) the continuously evolving nature of environmental identity in the context of complexities (i.e., political debates, climate change science) of climate change; (2) the challenges of expressing inner connection with nature (i.e., instrumental value vs. intrinsic value); (3) the various cultural and symbolic meanings associated with environmentally conscious behaviour (i.e., functional benefits vs emotional benefits) and (4) different forms of behavioural practices (i.e., environmentally conscious behaviour vs. anti-consumption). Therefore, this paper recommends utilising insights and measurements unique to environmentally conscious behaviour as opposed to that of general consumer behaviour because the antecedents of the former, especially environmental identity projections can be multifaceted.
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Highlights of SustainabilityVolume 1, Issue 1 (2022)pp. 1–4