Empirical Framework for a Relative Sustainability Evaluation of Urbanization on the Water–Energy–Food Nexus Using Simultaneous Equation Analysis

Abstract

The water–energy–food (WEF) nexus attracts much attention due to the elevated public concern regarding environmental conservation and sustainability. As we head into a new era of civilization, population increase and modernized lifestyles have led to an increasing need for water, energy, and food. However, severe hydrological precipitation significantly impacts agricultural harvest, and such influence becomes more apparent under the influence of climate change. Meanwhile, the major method of electricity generation (i.e., fossil fuel burning) has a negative impact on the environment. These inevitable threats are crucial and have to be dealt with for a society on the road towards sustainability. In the present study, an integrated evaluation of the WEF nexus was conducted for two areas with different levels of urbanization using empirical multiple linear regression in a simultaneous equation model (SEM). By incorporating the collected data into the SEM, the weighting coefficient of each identified variable was obtained, and the nexus implication was assessed in model simulation at different scenarios considering the population growth, agro-technology advancement, energy structure improvement, and available water resources. In the simulated results, three observations were found: (1) the rural area is more sustainable than the urban one; (2) the sustainability for both the investigated areas is significantly subject to their water supply and demand; and (3) food production was found to have a less important effect on the sustainable development of the urban area. This study identified the key factors in the WEF nexus exploration, which are economically and environmentally important for resource allocation. An empirical model was developed to correlate sustainable achievement with WEF management, as well as strategic policies that should be implemented under the pressure of urbanization.

Research on Total Factor Productivity and Influential Factors of the Regional Water–Energy–Food Nexus: A Case Study on Inner Mongolia, China

“…Amorim [10] gave the definition and analyzed influential factors of the WEF nexus through literature and qualitative research. Fan et al [11] used a multiple linear regression in a simultaneous equation model (SEM) to conduct the integrated evaluation of the WEF nexus and identified the key factors in the WEF nexus. Nhamo et al [12] thought that the WEF nexus was a conceptual framework that presented opportunities for greater resource coordination, management, and policy convergence across sectors.…”

Energy Distribution Modeling for Assessment and Optimal Distribution of Sustainable Energy for On-Grid Food, Energy, and Water Systems in Remote Microgrids

“…The necessary inputs to the model are the wind power curve, the air density 'ρ', the swept area 'A', and the wind speed 'v', as described in Equation (2).…”

“…Previous studies have been conducted with diverse scopes and frameworks [2][3][4]. The scope of prior research is often either on a large-scale, a regional or a national scale [5], or a very detailed scale, such as at the household level [6,7].…”

A Bibliometric Analysis of Food–Energy–Water Nexus: Progress and Prospects

“…Target decision evaluation is usually used in conjunction with econometric models. By selecting representative indicators in each system, a comprehensive index is calculated to judge the correlation and degree of correlation between systems [67][68][69][70][71].…”