Evaluating the waste management greenhouse gas emissions effects of domestic material biomass and raw material productivity consumption in Denmark

Abstract

The planet is currently grappling with ecological upheaval as a consequence of the relentless surge in global warming. In response, the Danish government has undertaken a commitment to environmental decarbonization, setting a goal for the year 2030. This study contributes to these efforts by assessing the extent to which domestic material biomass and raw material productivity consumption impact ecological sustainability in Denmark. This assessment is based on data spanning from 1990 to 2020. Furthermore, the study takes into consideration the additional effects of economic advancement and domestic consumption of fossil fuels. These factors are addressed using a nonlinear auto-regressive distributed lag approach, which captures their respective positive and negative influences. The outcomes of the study affirm that positive (negative) shifts in domestic consumption of biomass and raw materials productivity contribute to increased (decreased) ecological sustainability in Denmark. Similarly, positive (negative) shifts in economic growth and domestic consumption of fossil fuels lead to decreased (increased) environmental sustainability. These conclusions are further substantiated by the causality results in the frequency domain. Drawing from these empirical findings, the study presents various strategies aimed at advancing diverse sustainable development goals, offering potentially beneficial avenues for Denmark's progress.