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Under the influence of the dual policies of sustainable economic development and the national dual-carbon target, the establishment of an environmental protection department for the treatment of heavily polluting industries is imminent, and the country has launched pollution control policies and regulations to restrict the emission rights of heavily polluting industries. Therefore, this paper focuses on whether the restriction of emission rights in key industries has reduced carbon emissions. To achieve this, this paper uses panel data of prefecture-level cities in China from 2006 to 2019 and adopts a two-way fixed-effects DID model to systematically analyze the impact of the key pollution industry governance policies launched by the Ministry of Environmental Protection on CO2 emissions in 2017. And further analyze the role of variables such as green technology innovation patents and energy efficiency using this model, while parallel trend tests and placebo tests, and related policies are used to ensure the robustness of the regression results. This paper reveals that: (1) The heavy pollution industry governance policy implemented in 2017 can effectively reduce CO2 emissions in the cities of the treated group, and the effect is more significant in the year of policy implementation; (2) Green utility patents and energy-use efficiency are the effective mediating mechanisms to reduce CO2 emissions; (3) Over time, the effect of heavy pollution industry governance policy on CO2 emissions gradually decreases; (4) The reliability of the baseline regression results of this paper is proved by the use of parallel trend tests, placebo tests, and tests excluding the influence factors such as relevant policies in the same period. Therefore, the key polluting industries treatment policy launched by China's Ministry of Environmental Protection in 2017 under the recent dual-carbon policy development goals formulated by China, can effectively reduce carbon emissions; however, in the future economic development process, the government should give more consideration to the continuity of the policy impact and its coherence on economic development when implementing the policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With buildings being responsible for nearly a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, intensive building decarbonization programs are in place worldwide, with unintended consequences for historic buildings. To this end, national and international guidance on energy efficiency for historic buildings advocate for the adoption of a 'whole house approach' that integrates heritage values in energy efficiency plans. Most guidance, though, relies on non-evidence based, pre-assumptions of residents' heritage values. And yet, unless we understand how and why residents negotiate their decisions between energy efficiency, thermal comfort, and heritage conservation, such guidance will not be applicable. Despite the urgency to decarbonize the building stock, research on how inhabitants of old buildings make such decisions is extremely limited. It is also case-study specific, often lacking the required depth. To address this gap, this paper offers the first international, in-depth study on the topic. It does so through a rigorous double-coded, thematic analysis of 59 in-depth semi-structured interviews (totaling 206,771 words) carried out in Greece, Mexico, and the UK. The thematic analysis is combined with system dynamic analysis, essential for unveiling what parameters affect inhabitants' decisions over time. Drawing on theories on the dynamics of social practices, we conclude that the process of decision-making on energy efficiency, thermal comfort improvement, and heritage conservation is a socio-cultural, dynamic practice, the change and continuation of which depends on how the following elements are connected or disconnected: materials (e.g., original features), competencies (e.g., restoration skills), resources (e.g., costs), values, space/environment (e.g., natural light), senses (e.g., thermal comfort), and time (e.g., years living in the house). The connection or disconnection of those elements will depend on (a) the nature of the context (e.g., rural, urban, conservation area); (b) the listing status; (c) age and construction materials of building; (d) local climate; and (e) ownership status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a one-dimensional code, we computed the power (enthalpy discharge rate) of a twelve-cell mechanical draft cooling tower (MDCT) using over two hundred visible condensed water vapor plume volume measurements derived from images, weather data, and tower operating conditions. The plume images were simultaneously captured by multiple stationary digital cameras surrounding the cooling tower. An analysis technique combining structure from motion (SfM), a neural-network-based image segmentation algorithm, and space carving was used to quantify the volumes. Afterwards, the power output was computed using novel techniques in the one-dimensional code that included cooling tower exhaust plume adjacency effects implemented with a modified version of the entrainment function, weather data averaged from eleven stations, and fan operations at the times when plume volumes were measured. The model was then compared with the averaged observed power output, and it validated well with an average error ranging from 6 to 12%, depending on the meteorological data used in the simulations. This methodology can possibly determine power plant fuel consumption rates by applying visible imagery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities are experiencing a process of suburbanization and last-mile delivery has grown, worsening traffic congestion, pollutant emissions, and citizens' quality of life. Based on a real-life case study, this research compares the environmental performance of different delivery routes carried out by Diesel Light-Duty Vehicles (LDV) according to delivery area, city center or peri-urban. Some 242 delivery routes performed by thirteen drivers were recorded for one month, including instantaneous GPS position, speed, and other parameters (7262 km travelled). Four different delivery routes typologies were compared, and the drag function of the vehicles was characterized. It enabled calibration and modelling dynamics to calculate fuel consumption and pollutant emissions according to delivery routes. The results show that pedestrian crossings, traffic lights, and traffic congestion reduce the average operating speed by up to 57% in the city center and consequently overall energy efficiency. Our results highlight the urgency of replacing diesel LDV for deliveries in the city center with no-motorized transport modes and of implementing intermodality to cover deliveries in residential peri-urban areas. Due to low speeds and frequent start-stops, the efficiency of vehicles in these areas is reduced to a minimum and pollutant emissions increase. The outputs set a basis for recommendations for using LDV only for delivery routes with less traffic interruptions and foster intermodal solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This approach must take into account the following factors: the changes, functions and versatility of the national building park, the new requirements for living, the sustainable management of the building, the IAQ according to the guidelines already identified by WHO in 2000 [[24]]. At the same time, further EU recommendations report that across Europe the minimum energy performance requirements need to be gradually tightened, to avoid the deterioration of IAQ and the health of the population. Keywords: indoor air quality; energy efficiency; COVID-19; ventilation; air exchange; building; schools; human health; air pollution EN indoor air quality energy efficiency COVID-19 ventilation air exchange building schools human health air pollution 791 791 1 06/28/21 20210601 NES 210601 Recently, there has been a great increase in the importance of issues related to energy efficiency [[1]] and indoor air quality (IAQ) [[2]] in public and private buildings. Indoor air quality, energy efficiency, COVID-19, ventilation, air exchange, building, schools, human health, air pollution. [Extracted from the article]