Environmentally Extended Input‐Output (EEIO) Modeling for Industrial Decarbonization Opportunity Assessment
Year: 2024
Type: other
Abstract: In increasingly complex supply chains, technology changes in one sector can have cascading impacts in other sectors that are not fully considered in most emissions analyses. Environmentally extended input-output (EEIO) models enable top-down analysis of the interactions between sectors and across the entire economy, including characterization of Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. EEIO models utilize matrix-based techniques to infer flows of material resources and emissions between economic sectors. Here we describe a new Excel-based EEIO model and scenario analysis tool designed for rapid “what-if ” opportunity assessment. Baseline data in the model are drawn from publicly available sources, including recently released data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration's 2018 Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey and the Bureau of Economic Analysis's economic input-output accounts data for the same year. A user interface allows for modification of fuel, electricity, and demand assumptions in each industrial sector—facilitating rapid assessment of the potential impacts of sustainability interventions, such as reduced demand, increased use of recycled material, or a change in energy sourcing to low-carbon options. Scenario analyses such as these can inform policymakers on priorities for decarbonization and improved resource utilization, while also enabling researchers and manufacturers to understand the drivers of cumulative emissions impacts in different products and sectors. We will demonstrate capabilities of this unique tool through a pair of illustrative case studies focused on the circular economy.
Authors: Samuel Gause, Heather Liddell, Caroline Dollinger, Jordan Steen, Joe Cresko
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Engineering
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Funder: U.S. Department of Energy
OpenAlex ID: W4391247016