Regional carbon footprints of households: a German case study

Abstract

Households are either directly or indirectly responsible for the highest share of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. Hence, programs helping to improve human consumption habits have been identified as a comparatively cost-effective way to reduce household emissions significantly. Recently, various studies have determined strong regional differences in household carbon footprints, yet a case study for Germany has not been conducted. Local information and policies directed at household consumption in Germany thus devoid of any foundation. In this paper, we analyze the impact of different criteria such as location, income and size on household carbon footprints in Germany and demonstrate how the impact of GHG mitigation opportunities varies for different population segments. We use a multi-region input output hybrid LCA approach to developing a regionalized household carbon footprint calculator for Germany that considers 16 sub-national regions, 15 different household sizes, and eight different income and age categories. The model reveals substantial regional differences in magnitude and composition of household carbon footprints, essentially influenced by two criteria: income and size. The highest income household is found to emit 4.25 times as much CO 2 e than the lowest. We identify indirect emissions from consumption as the largest share of household carbon footprints, although this is subject to fluctuation based on household type. Due primarily to local differences in vehicle availability, income and nutrition, an average household in Baden-Wuerttemberg is found to have 25 % higher carbon footprint than its R. Miehe (&) Sustainable Production and Quality Management, Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation (IPA),

What can we learn from consumption-based carbon footprints at different spatial scales? Review of policy implications

“…Many of the reviewed studies, 26% in total (table S3 in the SI), recommend tailored policies (e.g. Druckman and Jackson 2009, Minx et al 2013, Hasegawa et al 2015, Miehe et al 2016. In addition to sustainable consumption and tailored policies, there are some other broad concepts mentioned in the literature that are difficult to fit under the chosen categories, such as the sharing economy and circular economy that have been brought up in a few recent papers.…”

Mapping the carbon footprint of EU regions

“…To our knowledge, no subnational assessment of household carbon footprints has been made available for the whole European Union. Previous studies on regional footprints cover only a limited number of (generally non-EU) countries or consumption sectors (Curry and Maguire 2011, Minx et al 2013, Minx et al 2009, Jones and Kammen 2014, Deng et al 2015, Zhang and Anadon 2014, Zhou and Imura 2011, Adom et al 2012, Miehe et al 2016, Larsen and Hertwich 2011, Lenzen et al 2004. This has prevented analysts from having a broader policy vision that goes beyond national and regional borders.…”

CO2 Efficiency Break Points for Processes Associated to Wood and Coal Transport and Heating

“…According to [22], where the human health and ecotoxicological impacts of electricity production from wood to coal fuel were compared, "Improvements in power plant efficiency, silviculture management, and reduced transport distance have the potential to reduce the respiratory effects of bioenergy systems." In terms of emissions, studies mainly deal with pollutant emissions produced by the combustion of solid fuels by households or industrial activities [23][24][25][26]. Other types of studies deal with the reduction of emissions of CO 2 , NO x , and other pollutants in the atmosphere caused by burning fossil fuels [27,28].…”