This article examines the extent to which the current EU climate protection law fulfils the 1.5-degree limit from Article 2 of the Paris Climate Agreement. To this end, a qualitative governance analysis is applied. On this methodological basis, the main instrument for fossil phasing-out – the emissions trading scheme – and the promotion of hydrogen are discussed as examples. The results show that the EU must further intensify its efforts on its territory and cooperate with other countries since the reformed ETS 1 and ETS 2, the SCF and the CBAM are not sufficiently effective to stay within the 1.5-degree limit of the Paris Agreement. This is also the case with regard to hydrogen policies. The primary focus of energy law on the ETS is therefore fundamentally convincing; however, it should be implemented more consistently, for example in terms of the breadth of the approach, closing loopholes and the level of ambition.

The German Constitutional Court’s climate verdict provides a re-interpretation of liberal- democratic core concepts and is highly relevant for liberal constitutional law in general – including EU and international law. The verdict accepts human rights as intertemporal and globally applicable; it applies the precautionary principle to these rights and frees them from the misleading causality debate. However, the court fails to address the most important violations of human rights, and it categorised climate policy as a greater threat to freedom than climate change. And the court does not make it clear that the Paris 1.5-degree limit implies a radically smaller carbon budget. Furthermore, little attention has so far been paid to the fact that the ruling implies an obligation for more EU climate protection, especially since most emissions are regulated supranationally. To be effective, the EU emissions trading system demands a reform, which should go well beyond the existing EU proposals to enable societal transformation to sustainability.

Additive manufacturing (AM) techniques are widely investigated for the cost-effective use of titanium (Ti) alloys in various aerospace applications. One of the AM techniques developed for such applications is plasma transferred arc solid free-form fabrication (PTA-SFFF). Materials manufactured through AM techniques often exhibit anisotropies in mechanical properties due to the layer-by-layer material build. In this regard, the present study investigates the isothermal directional fatigue of Ti-TiB metal matrix composite (MMC) manufactured by PTA-SFFF. This investigation includes rotating beam fatigue test, electron microscopy, and fatigue calculations. The fatigue experiments were performed at 350 ºC using specimen with the test axis oriented diagonally (45º) and parallel (90º) to the AM builds directions. The fatigue values from the current experiments along with literature data find that Ti MMC manufactured via PTA-SFFF exhibit fatigue anisotropy reporting highest strength in 90º and lowest in perpendicular (0º) AM build directions. Further, the electron microscopy investigations on 0º, 45º, and 90º AM build specimens reveal frequent TiB clusters in all three AM build directions and suggest that the spread of these TiB clusters play a role in fatigue anisotropy. Moreover, the fatigue calculations were performed using both the Paris’ and recently reported modified Paris’ equations. Comparison of R^2 values for these calculations show that modified Paris’ equation predicts the fatigue life of AM Ti-TiB MMC more accurately than the Paris’ equation.

Ecosystems are not merely vulnerable to climate change but, if sustainably restored and protected, are a major source of human resilience. Not only is the evidence-base for the importance of these “Nature-based Solutions” (NbS) growing rapidly, but NbS are featuring with increasing prominence in global climate change policy. Here we report on the prominence of NbS in the 141 adaptation components of the 167 Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) that were submitted to UNFCCC by all signatories of the Paris Agreement. In total, 103 nations include NbS in the adaptation component of their NDC, 76 nations include them in both their adaptation and mitigation component, and an additional 27 include them as part of their mitigation plans only. In other words, 130 nations—or 66% of all signatories to the Paris Agreement—have articulated intentions of working with ecosystems, in one form or another, to address the causes and consequences of climate change. However, commitments rarely translate into robust science-based targets. As climate pledges are revised in 2020, we urge the ecosystem science community to work closely with policymakers to identify meaningful adaptation targets that benefit both people and the ecosystems on which they depend.

Merchant marine fleet is under inspections by several parties to ensure maritime regulation compliance. One of the major effects on implementation of regulations by International Maritime Organization (IMO) is indeed Port State Control. This article aims to analyze Paris Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) all detention remarks from 2013 to 2019 for EU15 countries (except Luxemburg and Austria) through an approach based on Analytical Hierarchy Process and demonstrate the results on Geographic Information System (GIS) to guide marine industry on detainable Port State Control remarks and country risk profile. While Analytical Hierarchy Process Approach has been used to indicate the ranking of basic maritime regulations from the perspective of the port state control , GIS help us to demonstrate the regional dispersion amongst EU15. The data of the detained vessel taken from the public website of Paris MOU and each report considered as a professional judgement that causes detention. It has been shown that almost all countries top priorities for regulation are Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) and Fire Safety Systems (FSS). Consequently, the results of the study can assist Port State Officers, ship crew, ship owners and managers presenting the facts of their inspection and able to improve themselves. The spatial analysis also expected to guide ship owners and managers to focus their vessel’s deficiencies to prevent sub-standardization.

In order to ensure the sustainability of the shipping industry and marine ecosystem of Montenegro, it is necessary that Montenegro becomes a full member of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding (Paris MoU) on Port State Control. The reasons for doing so are numerous: the full adoption of standards stipulated by the Memorandum in relation to ship control; continuous keeping the pace with and development of new standards in compliance with turbulent changes in the maritime industry and operation (including the increasing scope of maritime transport); decrease in the number of detained ships which meet the requirements stipulated in international conventions and elimination of substandard ships in perspective; prevention of environmental pollution, sea and port incidents. This justified endeavour is supported by the fact that Montenegro is one out of two countries in Europe that are not the full members of the Paris MoU. Additionally, in this context it is necessary to emphasise the fact that the marine ecosystem of Montenegro makes an integral part of the world ocean. Accordingly, the improvement of the quality of national legislation which is compliant with international requirements is an imperative which has positive implications on the regional and global sustainability.

Among all Brazilian economic sectors, the livestock sector stands out due to its large production and high export volume. However, beef production is associated to significant environmental impacts, such as deforestation and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. The Paris Agreement was settled to avoid that global mean temperature rise up to 1.5 – 2º C by 2100. In 2020, Brazil committed in its nationally determined contribution (NDC) to reduce its GHG emission by 43% until 2030. This study aims to identify the association of beef production and beef cattle emissions, as well as assess predictive GHG emission scenarios for 2030 and value these emissions. To translate the environmental impacts of beef production into economic impacts, and thus amplify the discussion, we valued GHG emissions using the social cost of carbon (SCC). The results showed that the business as usual (BAU) GHG emission derived from beef production would range between 0.423 and 0.634 GtCO₂e in 2030, whereas the maximum emission estimated to meet the NDC should be 0.257 GtCO₂e. The SCC revealed the opportunity to reduce between US $18.8 and $42.6 billion in the cost of BAU emissions from beef production in 2030 if the NDC is met. Lastly, assessing a scenario where climate targets and beef exports are prioritized, between 2-10 kg of beef per capita would be available in the domestic market in 2030. Our results reveal the need and urgency of changes in livestock production to emit less GHG per kg of beef produced, and the avoided monetary cost of reducing emissions.

Port state control inspections implemented under the Paris Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) have become known as one of the best instruments for maritime administrations in European Union (EU) Member States to ensure that the ships docked in their ports comply with all maritime safety requirements. This paper focuses on the analysis of all inspections made between 2013 and 2018 in the top ten EU ports incorporated in the Paris MoU (17,880 inspections). The methodology consists of a multivariate statistical information system (STATIS) analysis using the inspected ship’s characteristics as explanatory variables. The variables used describe both the inspected ships (classification society, flag, age and gross tonnage) and the inspection (type of inspection and number of deficiencies), yielding a dataset with more than 600,000 elements in the data matrix. The most important results are that the classifications obtained match the performance lists published annually by the Paris MoU and the classification societies. Therefore, the approach is a potentially valid classification method and would then be useful to maritime authorities as an additional indicator of a ship’s risk profile to decide inspection priorities and as a tool to measure the evolution in the risk profile of flag over time.

The active debate about the processes governing the organic-rich sediment deposition generally involves the relative roles of elevated primary productivity and enhanced preservation related to anoxia. However, other less spotlighted factors could have a strong impact on such deposits: e.g. residence time into the water column (bathymetry), sedimentation rate, transport behavior of organo-mineral floccules on the sea floor. They are all strongly interrelated and may be obscured in the current conceptual models inspired from most representative modern analogues (i.e. upwelling zones and stratified basins). To improve our comprehension of organic matter distribution and heterogeneities, we conducted a sensitivity analysis on the processes involved in organic matter production and preservation which have been simulated within a 3D stratigraphic forward model. The Lower-Middle Toarcian of the Paris Basin was chosen as a case study as it represents one of the best documented example of marine organic matter accumulation. The relative influence of the critical parameters (bathymetry, diffusive transport, oxygen mixing rate and primary production) on the output parameters (Total Organic Carbon, and oxygen level), determined performing a Global Sensitivity Analysis, shows that, in the context of a shallow epicontinental basin, a moderate primary productivity (> 175 gC.m^-².yr^-1) can led to local anoxia and organic matter accumulation. We argue that, regarding all the processes involved, the presence and distribution of organic-rich intervals is linked as a first-order parameter to the morphology of the basin (e.g. ramp slope, bottom topography). These interpretations are supported by very specific ranges of critical parameters which allowed to obtain output parameter values in accordance with the data. This quantitative approach and its conclusions open new perspectives about the understanding of global distribution and preservation of organic-rich sediments.

Climate change impacts threaten sustainable development efforts. The magnitude of the impacts, however, varies with socio-ecological characteristics of locations. This is the reason there is con-sensus on the necessity for climate change adaptive capacity building that is country driven, based on and responsive to local needs. However, information on context specific capacity building needs in developing countries is not readily available. The objective of this study was to establish location specific awareness, training, educational, research and technology capacity building needs for climate change adaptation among small-holder farmers in Uganda. Structured interviews were undertaken with 465 households from five agro-ecological zones selected based on the level of vulnerability of agricultural systems to the main climate variation and change hazards. Results reveal substantial capacity building needs in all the zones. Majority of the farmers needed capacity building for interventions on soil water conservation practices for adapting to drought and un-predictable rainfall. For all zones, education, research, and technology were perceived as key needs. However, the needs varied among zones. These results demonstrate the importance of context specificity in adaptation efforts. The study provides agro-ecological and social system specific in-formation for climate change adaptation planning and policy interventions for effective capacity building

Shot peening is an attractive technique for fatigue enhanced performance of metallic components, because it promotes crack initiation retardation and later crack growth. Engineering design based on fatigue crack propagation predictions applying the principles of fracture mechanics is commonly used in aluminum structures for aerospace engineering. The main purpose of present work was to analyze the effect of shot peening on the fatigue crack propagation of the 7475 aluminum alloy, under both constant amplitude loading and periodical overload blocks. The tests were performed on 4 and 8 mm thickness specimen's with stress ratios of 0.05 and 0.4. The analysis of the shot-peened surface showed a small increase of the micro-hardness values, due to the plastic deformations imposed by shot peening. The beneficial effect of surface peening on fatigue crack growth rates is quite limited to an increasing near the threshold. The specimens’ thickness has only marginal influence on the crack propagation, in opposite to the stress ratio. Periodic overload blocks of 300 cycles promotes a reduction of the fatigue crack growth rate for both intervals of 7,500 and 15,000 cycles.

The measures related to climate change and international technology transfer have been closely intervened as most international environmental instruments, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and Kyoto Protocol as well as Paris Agreement which contain the provisions concerning environmentally friendly technology transfer. However, technologies have not been transferred adequately owing to the flaws in the relevant provisions and due to the fact that most technologies are possessed by transnational corporations and other private sectors. In order to undertake the commitment by the governments of developed countries and at the same time, to conform the commercial activities of their respective private sectors to the level of promised international obligation, an uniform international technology transfer agreement needs to be established separately, particularly under the World Trade Organization regime in Post Pairs-Agreement era. This paper first explores the defects and challenges found in provisions related to technology transfer in existing environmental agreements, and examines the possibilities of concluding an international technology transfer agreement both from theoretical and practical perspectives. climate change;environmentally sound technology;international technology transfer;Post Paris-Agreement Era

The fatigue delamination damage is one of the most important fatigue failure modes of laminated composite structures. However, the developments of the theoretical framework, mathematical/physical model and numerical simulation of fatigue delamination are still challenging issues, and there is a lack of systematic classification. This article reviews the experimental phenomena of the onset and propagation stage of delamination under fatigue loading, and summarizes the commonly used phenomenological models for laminated composite structures. The research methods, general modeling formulas and development prospects of the phenomenological models are presented in detail. In the light of the analysis of finite element model (FEM) for the laminated composite structures, a number of simulation methods of fatigue delamination crack propagation damage model are carefully classified. Furthermore, within the theoretical framework of strength theory model (SM), fracture mechanics model (FM), damage mechanics model (DM) and hybrid model (HM), the complete procedure, application, capability assessment, advantages and limitations of the models are also discussed in detail. Finally, several valuable suggestions are given for the research interests, and challenging technical problems that need to be overcome on the fatigue delamination prediction of laminated composite structures in the future.

Accessing energy in the world is crucial nowadays. Energy is an essential factor to achieve other SDGs including SDG7. However, the determination and evaluation of the relationship between different energy scenarios to achieve SDG 7 and other SDGs have not done yet. This paper seeks to fill this gap by investigating how energy seniors can contribute to achieving SDG 7 and other SDGs. Web of Science, ScienceDirect and Scopus databases were utilized for conduction a systematic review. A total finial 25 from 249 papers were filtered from 2015 to December 2020 via inclusion and exclusion criteria. This review involves six seniors of energy which primary linked to achieving the SDG 7 and other SDGs: modern energy 20% (n = 5/25), energy access 16% (n = 4/20), energy efficiency 8% (n= 2/16), renewable energy 28% (n= 7/14), energy services 8% (n= 2/7), and miscellaneous energy 20% (n= 5/5). This systematic review explores the opportunities, constraints and limitations, recommendations, and new directions. The results show that different energy scenarios contribute to achieving mainly (SDG7) and other SDGs. The outcomes from this systematic review provide a sense of direction for future researchers for future studies in this domain.

The geometry of structural members can influence the fatigue crack growth rate. In the paper, the T-stress depending on the element's geometry is used to quantify the effect of geometry on the fatigue crack growth rate. A series of fatigue tests on three-point bending specimens with different initial crack lengths were conducted. As a result, the dependence of the crack growth rate on the T-stress value was obtained.

The aim of the paper is to identify the most likely factors that determine the demand for Renewa-ble Energy Consumption (R.E.C.) in European countries. Although in Europe a high environmen-tal awareness is omnipresent, countries differ in scope and share of R.E.C. due to historical ener-getic policies and dependencies, investments into renewable and traditional energetic sectors, R&D development, structural changes required by energetic policy change, and many other fac-tors. The study refers to a set of macroeconomic, institutional, and social factors affecting energetic renewable policy and R.E.C. in selected European countries in two points of time: i.e., before and after the Paris Agreement. The Bayesian Average Classical Estimates (BACE) is applied to indicate the most likely factors affecting R.E.C. in 2015 and 2018. The comparison of the results reveals that the G.D.P. level, nuclear and hydro energy consumption were the determinants significant in both analyzed years. Furthermore, it became clear that in 2015 the R.E.C. depended strongly on the energy consumption structure, while in 2018, the foreign direct investment and trade openness played their role in increasing renewable energy consumption. The direction of changes is positive and complies with sustainable development goals (S.D.G.s).

Arctic feedbacks will accelerate climate change and could jeopardise mitigation efforts. The permafrost carbon feedback releases carbon to the atmosphere from thawing permafrost and the sea ice albedo feedback increases solar absorption in the Arctic Ocean. A constant positive albedo feedback and zero permafrost feedback have been used in nearly all climate policy studies to date, while observations and models show that the permafrost feedback is significant and that both feedbacks are nonlinear. Using novel dynamic emulators in the integrated assessment model PAGE-ICE, we investigate nonlinear interactions of the two feedbacks with the climate and economy under a range of climate scenarios consistent with the Paris Agreement. The permafrost feedback interacts with the land and ocean carbon uptake processes, and the albedo feedback evolves through a sequence of nonlinear transitions associated with the loss of Arctic sea ice in different months of the year. The US’s withdrawal from the current national pledges could increase the total discounted economic impact of the two Arctic feedbacks until 2300 by $25 trillion, reaching nearly $120 trillion, while meeting the 1.5 °C and 2 °C targets will reduce the impact by an order of magnitude.

Recent times have witnessed an increasing number of countries and private firms pledging carbon neutrality by mid-century. Whilst representing a significant improvement in intentions to tackle climate change, such pledges lack substance and structure. For instance, individual pledges lack coordination and aggregation among peers, while strategies and measures to achieve ambitious targets are largely absent. Moreover, current disagreements obstructing progress in international climate change negotiations further undermine the reliability of carbon neutrality objectives. Effective international policies are needed to foster aggregate mitigation ambitions and the creation of adequate supporting mechanisms. This theoretical paper describes a governance innovation aimed at overcoming such shortfalls and disagreements through a unifying yet customizable pathway towards carbon neutrality. It does so by first outlining a political governance framework based on a climate club interpretation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Secondly, it proposes carbon emission mitigation effort sharing on a per capita basis to ensure efficiency, equity and political feasibility. Thirdly, this paper describes how the supply of certified mitigations of carbon emissions required to satisfy effort sharing-based demand can be assetized as carbon credits by operationalizing Article 6 as a joint certification mechanism. The resulting governance architecture for managing demand and supply of mitigations shifts efforts to tackle climate change from a ‘problem-driven’ cost approach to ‘opportunity-driven’ value creation pathways towards carbon neutrality.

Background: This study examines the relationship between energy usage, health issues, and pro-environmental behavior (PEB) in Kyrgyzstan, amidst the country's commitment to transition from coal-based energy to renewable sources in line with the Paris Agreement. The purpose is to investigate citizens' attitudes towards PEB and their intentions to engage in environmentally friendly actions, focusing on gas, electricity, and coal. Methods: Drawing upon the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) framework, a survey was conducted among 1,455 respondents to explore attitudes towards PEB and energy sources' impact on health issues. Results: Decarbonization efforts in Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia are in their early stages, with coal remaining a primary energy source. The study emphasizes the importance of governmental policies and citizen action in achieving decarbonization goals. Rising electricity costs outweigh the increase in indirect energy costs for food, posing challenges for households in adapting to changing energy dynamics. Conclusions: Targeted interventions and communication strategies are crucial to promote pro-environmental behavior and facilitate the transition to sustainable energy sources. Understanding the relationships between health concerns, air pollution awareness, PEB, and energy source choices can inform policymakers and organizations in their efforts to ensure a sustainable and healthy future for Kyrgyzstan and other Central Asian countries.

Telecoupling, interactions between social-ecological systems across large, often global, distances, drives negative impacts from the forest-based carbon market. Yet, these negative impacts have been underreported; and therefore, likely vastly underestimated. We identify how these unintended negative impacts may occur and provide recommendations for the forest-based carbon market to better account for externalities by prioritising positive social impact, expanding comprehensive ecological outcomes and improving transparency of investments. We call for a carbon market that is designed to account for its global interconnectedness.

In this paper a dynamic relationship between the CO2 emissions in Finland, Norway and Sweden is presented. With the help of a VAR(2) model, and using the Granger terminology, it is shown that the emissions in Finland are affecting those in Norway and Sweden. Other aspects of this dynamic relationship are presented as well.