Growth in Environmental Footprints and Environmental Impacts Embodied in Trade: Resource Efficiency Indicators from EXIOBASE3

Abstract

SummaryMost countries show a relative decoupling of economic growth from domestic resource use, implying increased resource efficiency. However, international trade facilitates the exchange of products between regions with disparate resource productivity. Hence, for an understanding of resource efficiency from a consumption perspective that takes into account the impacts in the upstream supply chains, there is a need to assess the environmental pressures embodied in trade. We use EXIOBASE3, a new multiregional input-output database, to examine the rate of increase in resource efficiency, and investigate the ways in which international trade contributes to the displacement of pressures on the environment from the consumption of a population. We look at the environmental pressures of energy use, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, material use, water use, and land use. Material use stands out as the only indicator growing in both absolute and relative terms to population and gross domestic product (GDP), while land use is the only indicator showing absolute decoupling from both references. Energy, GHG, and water use show relative decoupling. As a percentage of total global environmental pressure, we calculate the net impact displaced through trade rising from 23% to 32% for material use (1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011), 23% to 26% for water use, 20% to 29% for energy use, 20% to 26% for land use, and 19% to 24% for GHG emissions. The results show a substantial disparity between trade-related impacts for Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and non-OECD countries. At the product group level, we observe the most rapid growth in environmental footprints in clothing and footwear. The analysis points to implications for future policies aiming to achieve environmental targets, while fully considering potential displacement effects through international trade.

EXIOBASE 3: Developing a Time Series of Detailed Environmentally Extended Multi‐Regional Input‐Output Tables

“…The high sectorial detail and wide spectrum of environmental data allow for both economy‐wide assessments as well as the identification of environmental hotspots, such as energy production, food, and mobility (see Wood et al. [] for results based on the new version). The newly available time series of EE MRIO tables in EXIOBASE 3 provides researchers and policy makers with a unique tool to identify priority sectors and consumption areas (see Giljum et al.…”

“…This paper describes the compilation process of EXIOBASE 3, from the preparation of data sources to the final MRIO tables and their analysis (for first results based on the analysis of the database, see the connected paper in this special issue: Wood et al. ). This article is structured as follows: The Compilation section gives an overview on the used data sources, data preparation, and refinements for both the monetary MRIO tables and the satellite accounts.…”

Prioritizing Consumption‐Based Carbon Policy Based on the Evaluation of Mitigation Potential Using Input‐Output Methods

“…The intervention‐screening method can be linked to any EE I‐O database providing the required level of sector detail. The current analysis uses EXIOBASE 3 (Stadler et al ; Wood et al ) (taking year 2011), which provides a high and consistent product resolution (200 products) with a specific focus on environmentally relevant sectors (agriculture, renewable energy, and waste treatment). EXIOBASE provides multiple environmental and social extensions (air and water emissions, land and material inputs, labor).…”

A Note on the Magnitude of the Feedback Effect in Environmentally Extended Multi‐Region Input‐Output Tables

“…As global production chains become more and more complex, these indirect supply chains are becoming more and more prevalent (see Wood et al. [], this issue). Modeling these supply chains using the unique production technologies of each region involved is a strong benefit of using MRIOs.…”

“…In this paper, we use the EXIOBASE3 global MRIO account (Stadler et al. ; for a recent overview of available databases, see Tukker and Dietzenbacher ) to investigate empirically how large these second‐order flows are. We also explore how much these effects are changing over time.…”