IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecomod/v200y2007i3p334-342.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Structural path analysis of ecosystem networks

Author

Listed:
  • Lenzen, Manfred

Abstract

This paper explains the application of structural path analysis (SPA), an input–output-based technique for measuring flows in ecological and linked ecological–economic networks. Previous methods of input–output flow analysis have concluded with aggregate indexes relying on the summing feature of the Leontief inverse in order to completely account for throughflows along a multitude of inter-compartmental paths. This paper shows that for most linear dissipative networks, a manageable number of paths of limited length exist that cover in the order of 99% or more of total throughflow. These paths can be conveniently extracted, enumerated and ranked using SPA.

Suggested Citation

  • Lenzen, Manfred, 2007. "Structural path analysis of ecosystem networks," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 200(3), pages 334-342.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:200:y:2007:i:3:p:334-342
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2006.07.041
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380006003693
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2006.07.041?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pawlowski, Christopher W. & Fath, Brian D. & Mayer, Audrey L. & Cabezas, Heriberto, 2005. "Towards a sustainability index using information theory," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 30(8), pages 1221-1231.
    2. Matutinovic, Igor, 2002. "Organizational patterns of economies: an ecological perspective," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 421-440, March.
    3. Defourny, Jacques & Thorbecke, Erik, 1984. "Structural Path Analysis and Multiplier Decomposition within a Social Accounting Matrix Framework," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 94(373), pages 111-136, March.
    4. Jack Hirshleifer, 1978. "Natural Economy Versus Political Economy," UCLA Economics Working Papers 129, UCLA Department of Economics.
    5. Manfred Lenzen & Lise-Lotte Pade & Jesper Munksgaard, 2004. "CO2 Multipliers in Multi-region Input-Output Models," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(4), pages 391-412.
    6. Lenzen, Manfred, 2003. "Environmentally important paths, linkages and key sectors in the Australian economy," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 14(1), pages 1-34, March.
    7. Ayres, Robert U., 2004. "On the life cycle metaphor: where ecology and economics diverge," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 425-438, April.
    8. Ayres, Robert U & Kneese, Allen V, 1969. "Production , Consumption, and Externalities," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 59(3), pages 282-297, June.
    9. Graham Treloar, 1997. "Extracting Embodied Energy Paths from Input-Output Tables: Towards an Input-Output-based Hybrid Energy Analysis Method," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(4), pages 375-391.
    10. Hannon, Bruce, 1995. "Input-output economics and ecology," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 331-333, August.
    11. Hannon, Bruce, 1997. "The use of analogy in biology and economics: From biology to economics, and back," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 8(4), pages 471-488, October.
    12. Jin, Di & Hoagland, Porter & Morin Dalton, Tracey, 2003. "Linking economic and ecological models for a marine ecosystem," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 367-385, October.
    13. Robert Costanza, 1997. "Frontiers in Ecological Economics," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1160.
    14. Thomas Crocker & John Tschirhart, 1992. "Ecosystems, externalities, and economies," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 2(6), pages 551-567, November.
    15. Catherine Hardy & Thomas E. Graedel, 2002. "Industrial Ecosystems as Food Webs," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 6(1), pages 29-38, January.
    16. Herman E. Daly, 1968. "On Economics as a Life Science," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 76(3), pages 392-392.
    17. Glen Peters & Edgar Hertwich, 2006. "Structural analysis of international trade: Environmental impacts of Norway," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(2), pages 155-181.
    18. Leontief, Wassily, 1970. "Environmental Repercussions and the Economic Structure: An Input-Output Approach," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 52(3), pages 262-271, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. David Font Vivanco & Ranran Wang & Sebastiaan Deetman & Edgar Hertwich, 2019. "Unraveling the Nexus: Exploring the Pathways to Combined Resource Use," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 23(1), pages 241-252, February.
    2. Hong, Jingke & Shen, Qiping & Xue, Fan, 2016. "A multi-regional structural path analysis of the energy supply chain in China's construction industry," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 56-68.
    3. Glen Peters & Edgar Hertwich, 2006. "Structural analysis of international trade: Environmental impacts of Norway," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(2), pages 155-181.
    4. Zhang, Yan & Li, Yaoguang & Hubacek, Klaus & Tian, Xin & Lu, Zhongming, 2019. "Analysis of CO2 transfer processes involved in global trade based on ecological network analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 233, pages 576-583.
    5. Li, Yingzhu & Su, Bin & Dasgupta, Shyamasree, 2018. "Structural path analysis of India's carbon emissions using input-output and social accounting matrix frameworks," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 457-469.
    6. Suh, Sangwon, 2004. "Functions, commodities and environmental impacts in an ecological-economic model," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 451-467, April.
    7. Andrew, Robbie & Forgie, Vicky, 2008. "A three-perspective view of greenhouse gas emission responsibilities in New Zealand," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(1-2), pages 194-204, December.
    8. Jeroen C.J.M. van den Bergh, 2000. "Ecological Economics: Themes, Approaches, and Differences with Environmental Economics," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 00-080/3, Tinbergen Institute.
    9. Anne Owen & Richard Wood & John Barrett & Andrew Evans, 2016. "Explaining value chain differences in MRIO databases through structural path decomposition," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(2), pages 243-272, June.
    10. Manfred Lenzen, 2001. "A Generalized Input-Output Multiplier Calculus for Australia," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 13(1), pages 65-92.
    11. Wood, Richard & Lenzen, Manfred, 2009. "Structural path decomposition," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 335-341, May.
    12. Zhiyong Yang & Wenjie Dong & Jinfeng Xiu & Rufeng Dai & Jieming Chou, 2015. "Structural Path Analysis of Fossil Fuel Based CO2 Emissions: A Case Study for China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(9), pages 1-25, September.
    13. Patterson, Murray & McDonald, Garry & Hardy, Derrylea, 2017. "Is there more in common than we think? Convergence of ecological footprinting, emergy analysis, life cycle assessment and other methods of environmental accounting," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 362(C), pages 19-36.
    14. Stern, David I., 1997. "Limits to substitution and irreversibility in production and consumption: A neoclassical interpretation of ecological economics," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 197-215, June.
    15. Roca, Jordi & Serrano, Monica, 2007. "Income growth and atmospheric pollution in Spain: An input-output approach," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(1), pages 230-242, June.
    16. Mateo Cordier & José Pérez Agúndez & Walter Hecq & Bertrand Hamaide, 2013. "A guiding framework for ecosystem services monetization in ecological-economic modeling," Working Papers CEB 13-018, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    17. Lenzen, Manfred & Dey, Christopher & Foran, Barney, 2004. "Energy requirements of Sydney households," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 375-399, July.
    18. Stanislav Shmelev & Harrison Roger Brook, 2021. "Macro Sustainability across Countries: Key Sector Environmentally Extended Input-Output Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-46, October.
    19. Wei Yang & Junnian Song, 2019. "Depicting Flows of Embodied Water Pollutant Discharge within Production System: Case of an Undeveloped Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-15, July.
    20. Cong, Rong-Gang & Stefaniak, Irena & Madsen, Bjarne & Dalgaard, Tommy & Jensen, Jørgen Dejgård & Nainggolan, Doan & Termansen, Mette, 2017. "Where to implement local biotech innovations? A framework for multi-scale socio-economic and environmental impact assessment of Green Bio-Refineries," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 141-151.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:200:y:2007:i:3:p:334-342. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/ecological-modelling .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.