Qualitative modelling of sustainable energy scenarios: An application and extension of the Bon Qualitative Input-Output model

Climate change is one of the major challenges facing economic systems at the start of the 21st century. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions will require both restructuring the energy supply system (production) and addressing the efficiency and sufficiency of the social uses of energy (consumption). The energy production system is a complicated supply network of interlinked sectors with 'knock-on' effects throughout the economy. End use energy consumption is governed by complex sets of interdependent cultural, social, psychological and economic variables driven by shifts in consumer preference and technological development trajectories. To date, few models have been developed for exploring alternative joint energy production-consumption systems. The aim of this work is to propose one such model. This is achieved in a methodologically coherent manner through integration of qualitative input-output models of production, with Bayesian belief network models of consumption, at point of final demand. The resulting integrated framework can be applied either (relatively) quickly and qualitatively to explore alternative energy scenarios, or as a fully developed quantitative model to derive or assess specific energy policy options. The qualitative applications are explored here.

The input-output model

Includes bibliography

Some applications of the input-output model to the Argentine economy

Includes bibliography

Productive structure and the functional distribution of income: an application of the input-output model

Includes bibliography

Estimation Technique of International Input-Output Model by Non-survey Method

The Asian International Input-Output (IO) Table that is compiled by Institute of Developing Economies-JETRO (IDE), was constructed in Isard type form. Thus, it required a lot of time to publish. In order to avoid this time-lag problem and establish a more simple compilation technique, this paper concentrates on verifying the possibility of using the Chenery-Moses type estimation technique. If possible, applying the Chenery-Moses instead of the Isard type would be effective for both impact and linkage analysis (except for some countries such as Malaysia and Singapore and some primary sectors. Using Chenery-Moses estimation method, production of the Asian International IO table can be reduced by two years. And more, this method might have the possibilities to be applied for updating exercise of Asian IO table.

Vertical specialisation indicator based on supply-driven input-output model

“Import content of exports”, based on Leontief’s demand-driven input-output model, has been widely used as an indicator to measure a country’s degree of participation in vertical specialisation trade. At a sectoral level, this indicator represents the share of inter-mediates imported by all sectors embodied in a given sector’s exported output. However, this indicator only reflects one aspect of vertical specialisation – the demand side. This paper discusses the possibility of using the input-output model developed by Ghosh to measure the vertical specialisation from the perspective of the supply side. At a sector level, the Ghosh type indicator measures the share of imported intermediates used in a sector’s production that are subsequently embodied in exports by all sectors. We estimate these two indicators of vertical specialisation for 47 selected economies for 1995, 2000, 2005 using the OECD’s harmonized input-output database. In addition, the potential biases of both indicators due to the treatment of net withdrawals in inventories, are also discussed.

The calculation of dynamic ecological footprint on the basis of the dynamic input-output model

The Leontief input-output model is widely used to determine the ecological footprint of consumption in a region or a country. It is able to capture spillover environmental effects along the supply change, thus its popularity is increasing in ecology related economic research. These studies are static and the dynamic investigations are neglected. The dynamic Leontief model makes it possible to involve the capital and inventory investment in the footprint calculation that projects future growth of GDP and environmental impacts. We show a new calculation method to determine the effect of capital accumulation on ecological footprint. Keywords: Dynamic Leontief model, Dynamic ecological footprint, Environmental management, Allocation method

A Dynamic Input-Output Model with Renewable Resources

The paper studies a generalisation of the dynamic Leontief input-output model. The standard dynamic Leontief model will be extended with the balance equation of renewable resources. The renewable stocks will increase regenerating and decrease exploiting primary natural resources. In this study the controllability of this extended model is examined by taking the consumption as the control parameter. Assuming balanced growth for both consumption and production, we investigate the exhaustion of renewable resources in dependence on the balanced growth rate and on the rate of natural regeneration. In doing so, classic results from control theory and on eigenvalue problems in linear algebra are applied.

A Dynamic Input-Output Model with Renewable Resources

The paper studies a generalisation of the dynamic Leontief input-output model. The standard dynamic Leontief model will be extended with the balance equation of renewable resources. The renewable stocks will increase regenerating and decrease exploiting primary natural resources. In this study the controllability of this extended model is examined by taking the consumption as the control parameter. Assuming balanced growth for both consumption and production, we investigate the exhaustion of renewable resources in dependence on the balanced growth rate and on the rate of natural regeneration. In doing so, classic results from control theory and on eigenvalue problems in linear algebra are applied.

Methodology for assessing regional economic impacts of charging HGVs in Spain: an integrated approach through a random utility based multiregional input-output and a road transportation network model

An integrated approach composed of a random utility-based multiregional input-output model and a road transport network model was developed for evaluating the application of a fee to heavy-goods vehicles (HGVs) in Spain. For this purpose, a distance-based charge scenario (in euros per vehicle kilometer) for HGVs was evaluated for a selected motorway network in Spain. Although the aim of this charging policy was to increase the efficiency of transport, the approach strongly identified direct and indirect impacts on the regional economy. Estimates of the magnitude and extent of indirect effects on aggregated macroeconomic indicators (employment and gross domestic product) are provided. The macroeconomic effects of the charging policy were found to be positive for some regions and negative for other regions.

The incentives for supply chain collaboration to improve material efficiency in the use of steel: An analysis using input output techniques

In the face of increasing demand and limited emission reduction opportunities, the steel industry will have to look beyond its process emissions to bear its share of emission reduction targets. One option is to improve material efficiency - reducing the amount of metal required to meet services. In this context, the purpose of this paper is to explore why opportunities to improve material efficiency through upstream measures such as yield improvement and lightweighting might remain underexploited by industry. Established input-output techniques are applied to the GTAP 7 multi-regional input-output model to quantify the incentives for companies in key steel-using sectors (such as property developers and automotive companies) to seek opportunities to improve material efficiency in their upstream supply chains under different short-run carbon price scenarios. Because of the underlying assumptions, the incentives are interpreted as overestimates. The principal result of the paper is that these generous estimates of the incentives for material efficiency caused by a carbon price are offset by the disincentives to material efficiency caused by labour taxes. Reliance on a carbon price alone to deliver material efficiency would therefore be misguided and additional policy interventions to support material efficiency should be considered. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Using input-output data in life cycle inventory analysis

The impacts on the environment from human activities are of increasing concern. The need to consider the reduction in energy consumption is of particular interest, especially in the construction and operation of buildings, which accounts for between 30 and 40% of Australia's national energy consumption. Much past and more recent emphasis has been placed on methods for reducing the energy consumed in the operation of buildings. With the energy embodied in these buildings having been shown to account for an equally large proportion of a building's life cycle energy consumption, there is a need to look at ways of reducing the embodied energy of buildings and related products. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is considered to be the most appropriate tool for assessing the life cycle energy consumption of buildings and their products. The life cycle inventory analysis (LCIA) step of a LCA, where an inventory of material and energy inputs is gathered, may currently suffer from several limitations, mainly concerned with the use of incomplete and unreliable data sources and LCIA methods. These traditional methods of LCIA include process-based and input-output-based LCIA. Process-based LCIA uses process specific data, whilst input-output-based LCIA uses data produced from an analysis of the flow of goods and services between sectors of the Australian economy, also known as input-output data. With the incompleteness and unreliability of these two respective methods in mind, hybrid LCIA methods have been developed to minimise the errors associated with traditional LCIA methods, combining both process and input-output data. Hybrid LCIA methods based on process data have shown to be incomplete. Hybrid LCIA methods based on input-output data involve substituting available process data into the input-output model minimising the errors associated with process-based hybrid LCIA methods. However, until now, this LCIA method had not been tested for its level of completeness and reliability. The aim of this study was to assess the reliability and completeness of hybrid life cycle inventory analysis, as applied to the Australian construction industry. A range of case studies were selected in order to apply the input-output-based hybrid LCIA method and evaluate the subsequent results as obtained from each case study. These case studies included buildings: two commercial office buildings, two residential buildings, a recreational building; and building related products: a solar hot water system, a building integrated photovoltaic system and a washing machine. The range of building types and products selected assisted in testing the input-output-based hybrid LCIA method for its applicability across a wide range of product types. The input-output-based hybrid LCIA method was applied to each of the selected case studies in order to obtain their respective embodied energy results. These results were then evaluated with the use of a number of evaluation methods. These evaluation methods included an analysis of the difference between the process-based and input-output-based hybrid LCIA results as an evaluation of the completeness of the process-based LCIA method. The second method of evaluation used was a comparison between equivalent process and input-output values used in the input-output-based hybrid LCIA method as a measure of reliability. It was found that the results from a typical process-based LCIA and process-based hybrid LCIA have a large gap when compared to input-output-based hybrid LCIA results (up to 80%). This gap has shown that the currently available quantity of process data in Australia is insufficient. The comparison between equivalent process-based and input-output-based LCIA values showed that the input-output data does not provide a reliable representation of the equivalent process values, for material energy intensities, material inputs and whole products. Therefore, the use of input-output data to account for inadequate or missing process data is not reliable. However, as there is currently no other method for filling the gaps in traditional process-based LCIA, and as input-output data is considered to be more complete than process data, and the errors may be somewhat lower, using input-output data to fill the gaps in traditional process-based LCIA appears to be better than not using any data at all. The input-output-based hybrid LCIA method evaluated in this study has shown to be the most sophisticated and complete currently available LCIA method for assessing the environmental impacts associated with buildings and building related products. This finding is significant as the construction and operation of buildings accounts for a large proportion of national energy consumption. The use of the input-output-based hybrid LCIA method for products other than those related to the Australian construction industry may be appropriate, especially if the material inputs of the product being assessed are similar to those typically used in the construction industry. The input-output-based hybrid LCIA method has been used to correct some of the errors and limitations associated with previous LCIA methods, without the introduction of any new errors. Improvements in current input-output models are also needed, particularly to account for the inclusion of capital equipment inputs (i.e. the energy required to manufacture the machinery and other equipment used in the production of building materials, products etc.). Although further improvements in the quantity of currently available process data are also needed, this study has shown that with the current available embodied energy data for LCIA, the input-output-based hybrid LCIA appears to provide the most reliable and complete method for use in assessing the environmental impacts of the Australian construction industry.

A New Measurement for International Fragmentation of the Production Process: An International Input-Output Approach

The paper investigates the possibility of constructing a new measurement for analysing international fragmentation of the production process. It asserts that the current usage of relevant data, whether the trade shares of parts and components or the index of Vertical Specialisation, is quite unsatisfactory for measuring the phenomenon, since they critically lack the overall perspective of the entire structure of production chains. 　The new measurement is formulated such that it captures every aspect of the vertical sequence of production linkages. It is based on the input-output model of Average Propagation Lengths, recently developed by Eric Dietzenbacher and others, which show the average number of production stages that are passed through for an exogenous change in one industry to affect another. By applying this model to the data of the Asian International Input-Output Tables, the index is able to measure the international dimension of production sharing and division of labour in East Asia.

Input-Output Based Economic Impact Evaluation System for Small City Development: A Case Study on Saemangeum's Flux City Design

The paper aims to develop a quasi-dynamic interregional input-output model for evaluating the macro-economic impacts of small city development. The features of the model are summarized as follows: (1) the consumption expenditure of households is regarded as an endogenous variable, (2) the technological change is determined by the change of industrial Location Quotient caused by firm's investment activities. (3) a strong feedback function between the city design and the economic analysis is provided. For checking the performance of the model, Saemangeum's Flux City Design Plan is used as the simulation target in our paper.

Modeling impact assessment of transport policies through a multiregional input-output integrated approach

El objetivo de esta investigación es desarrollar una metodología para estimar los potenciales impactos económicos y de transporte generados por la aplicación de políticas en el sector transporte. Los departamentos de transporte y otras instituciones gubernamentales relacionadas se encuentran interesadas en estos análisis debido a que son presentados comúnmente de forma errónea por la insuficiencia de datos o por la falta de metodologías adecuadas. La presente investigación tiene por objeto llenar este vacío haciendo un análisis exhaustivo de las técnicas disponibles que coincidan con ese propósito. Se ha realizado un análisis que ha identificado las diferencias cuando son aplicados para la valoración de los beneficios para el usuario o para otros efectos como aspectos sociales. Como resultado de ello, esta investigación ofrece un enfoque integrado que incluye un modelo Input-Output de múltiples regiones basado en la utilidad aleatoria (RUBMRIO), y un modelo de red de transporte por carretera. Este modelo permite la reproducción con mayor detalle y realismo del transporte de mercancías que por medio de su estructura sectorial identifica los vínculos de las compras y ventas inter-industriales dentro de un país utilizando los servicios del transporte de mercancías. Por esta razón, el modelo integrado es aplicable a diversas políticas de transporte. En efecto, el enfoque se ha aplicado para estudiar los efectos macroeconómicos regionales de la implementación de dos políticas diferentes en el sistema de transporte de mercancías de España, tales como la tarificación basada en la distancia recorrida por vehículo-kilómetro (€/km) aplicada a los vehículos del transporte de mercancías, y para la introducción de vehículos más largos y pesados de mercancías en la red de carreteras de España. El enfoque metodológico se ha evaluado caso por caso teniendo en cuenta una selección de la red de carreteras que unen las capitales de las regiones españolas. También se ha tenido en cuenta una dimensión económica a través de una tabla Input-Output de múltiples regiones (MRIO) y la base de datos de conteo de tráfico existente para realizar la validación del modelo. El enfoque integrado reproduce las condiciones de comercio observadas entre las regiones usando el sistema de transporte de mercancías por carretera, y que permite por comparación con los escenarios de políticas, determinar las contribuciones a los cambios distributivos y generativos. Así pues, el análisis estima los impactos económicos en cualquier región considerando los cambios en el Producto Interno Bruto (PIB) y el empleo. El enfoque identifica los cambios en el sistema de transporte a través de todos los caminos de la red de transporte a través de las medidas de efectividad (MOEs). Los resultados presentados en esta investigación proporcionan evidencia sustancial de que en la evaluación de las políticas de transporte, es necesario establecer un vínculo entre la estructura económica de las regiones y de los servicios de transporte. Los análisis muestran que para la mayoría de las regiones del país, los cambios son evidentes para el PIB y el empleo, ya que el comercio se fomenta o se inhibe. El enfoque muestra cómo el tráfico se desvía en ambas políticas, y también determina detalles de las emisiones de contaminantes en los dos escenarios. Además, las políticas de fijación de precios o de regulación de los sistemas de transporte de mercancías por carretera dirigidas a los productores y consumidores en las regiones promoverán transformaciones regionales afectando todo el país, y esto conduce a conclusiones diferentes. Así mismo, este enfoque integrado podría ser útil para evaluar otras políticas y otros países en todo el mundo. The purpose of this research is to develop a methodological approach aimed at assessing the potential economic and transportation impacts of transport policies. Transportation departments and other related government parties are interested in such analysis because it is commonly misrepresented for the insufficiency of data and suitable methodologies available. This research is directed at filling this gap by making a comprehensive analysis of the available techniques that match with that purpose. The differences when they are applied for the valuation of user benefits or for other impacts as social matters have been identified. As a result, this research presents an integrated approach which includes both a random utility-based multiregional Input-Output model (RUBMRIO), and a road transport network model. This model accounts for freight transport with more detail and realism because its commodity-based structure traces the linkages of inter-industry purchases and sales that use freight services within a given country. For this reason, the integrated model is applicable to various transport policies. In fact, the approach is applied to study the regional macroeconomic effects of implementing two different policies in the freight transport system of Spain, such as a distance-based charge in vehicle-kilometer (€/km) for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs), and the introduction of Longer and Heavier Vehicles (LHVs) in the road network of Spain. The methodological approach has been evaluated on a case by case basis considering a selected road network of highways linking the capitals of the Spanish regions. It has also considered an economic dimension through a Multiregional Input Output Table (MRIO) and the existing traffic count database used in the model validation. The integrated approach replicates observed conditions of trade among regions using road freight transport systems that determine contributions to distributional and generative changes by comparison with policy scenarios. Therefore, the model estimates economic impacts in any given area by considering changes in Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employment (jobs), and in the transportation system across all paths of the transport network considering Measures of effectiveness (MOEs). The results presented in this research provide substantive evidence that in the assessment of transport policies it is necessary to establish a link between the economic structure of regions and the transportation services. The analysis shows that for most regions in the country, GDP and employment changes are noticeable when trade is encouraged or discouraged. This approach shows how traffic is diverted in both policies, and also provides details of the pollutant emissions in both scenarios. Furthermore, policies, such as pricing or regulation of road freight transportation systems, directed to producers and consumers in regions will promote different regional transformations across the country, and this lead to different conclusions. In addition, this integrated approach could be useful to assess other policies and countries worldwide.