Residential electricity consumption continues to rise and accounts for 16-50% of the total energy... more Residential electricity consumption continues to rise and accounts for 16-50% of the total energy use across different countries in the world. In many developing countries, people are deploying more and more household appliances for comfort and utility for which refrigerators are indispensable. Globally, refrigerator use constitutes a significant proportion of household demand ranging from 3-19%, because it operates steadily over time irrespective of seasons or place and thereby has a considerable impact on energy use and the environment. Ghana has commenced the implementation of the established mandatory minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for refrigerators but no study has been done to understand its impact in time (2020-2050) and its regional variation based on the different socio-economic dynamics of each location. This study, therefore, aims to analyse temporally and spatially the impact of different scenarios of MEPS and labelling transitions in relation to energy savi...
Abstract Previous studies demonstrated how urban sustainability assessment systems can support th... more Abstract Previous studies demonstrated how urban sustainability assessment systems can support the decision-making process to enhance the sustainability performance of an existing urban area. Nevertheless, although these systems were conceived to evaluate environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability, the economic dimension is still underrepresented, particularly in terms of alternative project solutions´ economic feasibility. Therefore, this paper used a neighborhood redevelopment project in Lisbon (Portugal) to propose the economic evaluation of alternative sustainable solutions from single buildings to fully integrated community strategies. For this purpose, it estimated and compared the net present value, the internal rate of return, and the payback time of three alternative renovation strategies: creation of green space areas for urban agriculture; installation of photovoltaic systems; and installation of water harvesting systems. The results showed that community strategies can maximize the economic benefits over time by taking advantage of scale economies and synergies between buildings. In addition, the paper highlighted the possible economic benefits of combining alternative renovation strategies. Finally, it discussed policy and regulatory considerations, providing recommendations for future versions of urban sustainability assessment systems.
IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 2019
Planning and managing the rapidly growing cities in a manner that delivers a balanced solution fo... more Planning and managing the rapidly growing cities in a manner that delivers a balanced solution for their environmental, social and economic long-term development constitutes one of the grand challenges of societies. In the urban planning field, several sustainability assessment systems emerged to guide the planning process towards these goals. After two decades of existence, there is a need to further analyze the lessons learned from the application of these systems and discuss the pathways towards more sustainable societies. This paper provides a literature review of the most widely used urban sustainability assessment systems: BREEAM Communities, LEED Neighborhoods, CASBEE Urban Development, Green Star Communities, and DGNB Urban Districts. Here, we analyzed 124 publications on the topic published between 2015-2018, using the selected assessment systems as keywords. This study revealed that there is a need for context customization of global targets into local actionable measures;...
Residential electricity consumption continues to rise and accounts for 16-50% of the total energy... more Residential electricity consumption continues to rise and accounts for 16-50% of the total energy use across different countries in the world. In many developing countries, people are deploying more and more household appliances for comfort and utility for which refrigerators are indispensable. Globally, refrigerator use constitutes a significant proportion of household demand ranging from 3-19%, because it operates steadily over time irrespective of seasons or place and thereby has a considerable impact on energy use and the environment. Ghana has commenced the implementation of the established mandatory minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for refrigerators but no study has been done to understand its impact in time (2020-2050) and its regional variation based on the different socio-economic dynamics of each location. This study, therefore, aims to analyse temporally and spatially the impact of different scenarios of MEPS and labelling transitions in relation to energy savi...
Abstract Previous studies demonstrated how urban sustainability assessment systems can support th... more Abstract Previous studies demonstrated how urban sustainability assessment systems can support the decision-making process to enhance the sustainability performance of an existing urban area. Nevertheless, although these systems were conceived to evaluate environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability, the economic dimension is still underrepresented, particularly in terms of alternative project solutions´ economic feasibility. Therefore, this paper used a neighborhood redevelopment project in Lisbon (Portugal) to propose the economic evaluation of alternative sustainable solutions from single buildings to fully integrated community strategies. For this purpose, it estimated and compared the net present value, the internal rate of return, and the payback time of three alternative renovation strategies: creation of green space areas for urban agriculture; installation of photovoltaic systems; and installation of water harvesting systems. The results showed that community strategies can maximize the economic benefits over time by taking advantage of scale economies and synergies between buildings. In addition, the paper highlighted the possible economic benefits of combining alternative renovation strategies. Finally, it discussed policy and regulatory considerations, providing recommendations for future versions of urban sustainability assessment systems.
IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 2019
Planning and managing the rapidly growing cities in a manner that delivers a balanced solution fo... more Planning and managing the rapidly growing cities in a manner that delivers a balanced solution for their environmental, social and economic long-term development constitutes one of the grand challenges of societies. In the urban planning field, several sustainability assessment systems emerged to guide the planning process towards these goals. After two decades of existence, there is a need to further analyze the lessons learned from the application of these systems and discuss the pathways towards more sustainable societies. This paper provides a literature review of the most widely used urban sustainability assessment systems: BREEAM Communities, LEED Neighborhoods, CASBEE Urban Development, Green Star Communities, and DGNB Urban Districts. Here, we analyzed 124 publications on the topic published between 2015-2018, using the selected assessment systems as keywords. This study revealed that there is a need for context customization of global targets into local actionable measures;...
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