A comparison of environmental and energetic performance of European countries: A sustainability index

Cucchiella, Federica; D’Adamo, Idiano; Gastaldi, Massimo; Koh, SC Lenny; Rosa, Paolo

doi:10.1016/j.rser.2017.04.077

Cited by 97 publications

(61 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…In the assessment of the environmental and energetic performance of European countries, Sweden ranks first [62]. In terms of investment in renewable power and fuels and in solar PV capacity UK is the first European country [54].…”

Section: Policy Actions and Private Initiatives Regarding The Energy mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Institutionalization of the Consistency and Comparability Principle in the European Companies

et al. 2018

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There is a general tendency in reporting nowadays, represented by the institutionalization of the environmental reporting in an increasing number of companies. The novelty of our work resides in the fact that this is the first study which analyses the consistency and comparability of the information included in integrated reports. The objective of this research is to determine to what extent the reporting of the environmental performance indicators, including energy, prescribed by the Global Reporting Initiative's guidelines is in line with the consistency and comparability principle. We analysed the reports published by the European organisations included in the Pilot Programme of the International Integrated Reporting Council. We used the following methodology. First, we compared the environmental reporting of 2016 from one company to another, splitting the sample in accordance with the industries. Second, we analysed the reporting practices of the environmentally-sensitive companies, including energy, in 2010, 2013 and 2016, in order to analyse the consistency of the information published. The results of the research show that the environmentally-sensitive companies, including energy, publish more information. Also, the score of information consistency is above average. The best consistency level is registered in the Basic Materials industry, followed by Oil & Gas and Industrials. Emissions and energy indicators are the most disclosed. This research is useful to understand how companies apply the consistency and comparability principle in practice. The importance of this article is given by the fact that consistency and comparability improve the quality of the sustainability reporting. Without consistency and comparability the information's relevance is very low.Energies 2018, 11, 3456 2 of 24 to two studies [13,14] investigating in 1999 and 2017 the sustainability reports published by 250 companies included in the G250 35% of the companies disclosed information on social, environmental and economic issues (commonly referred to as corporate social responsibility-CSR) in 1999 and 93% in 2017.As there are almost 400 reporting instruments in place [15], a major issue which appears regarding the environmental reporting is the consistency and comparability of the information. The most comprehensive and used guidelines in the area are the ones issued by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) [14]. Thus, the objective of our research is to analyse the consistency and comparability of environmental performance indicators (EPIs), especially the ones related with energy and emissions issues, published by the European companies included in the International Integrated Reporting Council's (IIRC) Pilot Program using the GRI guidelines. Consistency assesses that the information is constantly disclosed in time while the comparability evaluates the disclosure of the information from one company to another. By analysing all the EPIs as opposed to only the ones related with energy and emissions, we emphasize better the importanc...

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Section: Policy Actions and Private Initiatives Regarding The Energy mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Institutionalization of the Consistency and Comparability Principle in the European Companies

et al. 2018

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“…This topic can be examined from multiple perspectives. For example, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, and Finland occupy the top of the ranking evaluating the levels of implementation of the Europe 2020 Strategy [17] and the same countries, in addition to Italy, France, Lithuania, Germany, Portugal, Ireland, Croatia, and Latvia, have a value greater than the European average, considering their environmental and energy performance [18]. Another work has, instead, defined Portugal, Latvia, Italy, Austria, and France as having the best results in terms of environmental protection [19] and evidence for EU 28 MSs define that the increase of 1% in primary production of RESs produces a growth of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita by 0.05-0.06% [20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Future Trajectories of Renewable Energy Consumption in the European Union

2018

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Renewable energy sources (RESs) are able to reduce the European Union (EU)'s dependence on foreign energy imports, also meeting sustainable objectives to tackle climate change and to enhance economic opportunities. Energy management requires a quantitative analysis and the European Commission follows the performance of each Member State (MS) in order to define the corrective measures towards 2020 targets. Starting from historical data reported in the Eurostat database and through a mathematical model, this work proposes future trajectories towards 2020 of the share of energy from renewables (REs) in terms of gross final energy consumption (GFEC). Furthermore, a quantitative analysis based on two indices-(i) the share of REs in GFEC, and (ii) gross final renewable energy consumption (GFREC) per capita-permits a comparison among 28 MSs. The share of REs in GFEC in EU 28 varies from 19.4% to 21.8% in future trajectories towards 2020. Sweden and Finland occupy the top part of the ranking, while six MSs (Belgium, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, and the United Kingdom) are not able to reach the 2020 targets.

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“…Other methods of aggregation have been used to construct a composite index such as the Geometric Mean [155]. The Geometric Mean represents a balanced solution, and its multi-criteria analysis eases, although it does not eliminate, the compensation of the indicator results [156].…”

Section: Discussion On the Selected Methods And Approaches Followed Imentioning

confidence: 99%

Proposal of a Sustainable Circular Index for Manufacturing Companies

2017

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Abstract:Recently the circular economy has increasingly received attention worldwide due to the recognition that the security of the supply of resources and environmental sustainability are crucial for the prosperity of all the countries and businesses. G20 countries are stimulating the development of frameworks that enhance the circular economy and generally more sustainable production and consumption modes. In this context, this paper aims to suggest an index to assess the sustainability and the circularity of manufacturing companies. With this tenet, a Sustainable Circular Index (SCI) is proposed based on a five-phase framework. This index could support managers in assessing their level of sustainability and circularity and in implementing some practices that could improve the performances of their companies regarding these two topics. This index represents an important benchmarking tool for manufacturing companies to assess their sustainable and circular behavior and represents a guideline for managers.

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A comparison of environmental and energetic performance of European countries: A sustainability index

Cited by 97 publications

References 72 publications

The Institutionalization of the Consistency and Comparability Principle in the European Companies

The Institutionalization of the Consistency and Comparability Principle in the European Companies

Future Trajectories of Renewable Energy Consumption in the European Union

Proposal of a Sustainable Circular Index for Manufacturing Companies

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