Natural Resource Scarcity

The research theme “Natural Resource Scarcity” established in 2011 addresses causes and effects of scarcities in the supply of natural resources and seeks to provide appropriate allocation mechanisms for management problems that arise from the increasing scarcity of natural resources. The research theme covers research and policy advice for both finite and renewable natural resources. Examples of scarce resources are industrial inputs, such as metals, rare minerals and wood or energy resources, such as petroleum, natural gas, coal and renewable energy sources.  

Energy Efficiency in the German Industry Sector

Companies are faced with a limited set of options when responding to increasing energy prices and to the pressure to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The severity of this problem varies across sectors and industries, but it is especially serious in energy intensive economic sectors like metal manufacturers, refineries or the pulp and paper industry. Once fuel-switching opportunities are exhausted, the only option left is the substitution of capital for energy, i.e. a technological effort to reduce energy intensity. Apart from that, recent discussions suggest that on a macroeconomic level massive progress in the efficient use of energy as well as the decoupling of energy use and economic output is required to maintain security of supply and the established level of welfare in developed countries without compromising environment and climate protection goals. For this reason we study developments in energy intensity and changes in fuel mix in German manufacturing plants. Our goal is an assessment of the efficacy of appropriate policy instruments.

Arctic Climate Change, Economy and Society (ACCESS)

With ongoing climate change the Arctic Ocean changes. Rising temperatures lead to receding sea ice, with severe implications not only for the ecosystem itself, but also for accessibility to human activity. Growing interest in the Arctic Ocean as shipping route, fishing ground and resource hold imply both grand opportunities and threatening risks, affecting the social and economic environment of Arctic communities, littoral states and beyond. Naturally, the stress on the ecosystem Arctic Ocean is going to increase. It is the task of the “Arctic Climate Change, Economy and Society (ACCESS)” project to evaluate the social and economic implications of a change in the accessibility of the Arctic Ocean, point out the according risks and provide an assessment of the inherent trade-offs. The task of our research group is to evaluate the implications of an increased production of hydrocarbons in the Arctic Ocean. Together with partners from various disciplines we study the economic costs, environmental risks, implications for world markets and sustainability of off-shore energy production from the Arctic. ACCESS is part of the “Ocean of Tomorrow” call within the European Union’s seventh Framework Program for Research and Technological Development. The project consortium consists of 27 partners from ten European Countries.
 
Read more on the ACCESS project homepage http://www.access-eu.org.

Urban Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (URBES)

Today, cities are facing enormous challenges resulting from global change, e.g. in the climate system. Ecosystems provide flexibility in urban landscapes and help build adaptive capacity to cope with such challenges as, for example, the increased risk of heat waves and flooding. However, systematic knowledge about the links between urban biodiversity, ecosystem services and human well-being is still largely missing. Moreover, urban ecosystem services are generally not priced on markets and thus usually under-provided by market forces. In order to reconcile the sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services in urban areas with an ever growing demand for land use, the ecological, socio-cultural and monetary values of ecosystem services need to be fully incorporated into decision making processes. The aim of the URBES project is to (1) analyze the role of urban biodiversity and ecosystem services for human well-being, (2) to quantify and value their contribution to human well-being, and (3) to give policy advice for sustainable long-term urban land-use management. An innovative aspect of URBES is that it is the first project to apply the TEEB approach to urban environments, and that it uses both monetary and non-monetary valuation to assess urban biodiversity and ecosystem services. 

Strategic raw material supply

For economic development - especially in the technology-intensive sectors - the availability of raw materials has become crucial. These mainly mineral resources are limited and unevenly distributed around the world. Access to these resources thus gains  strategic importance. Increasingly often, the exploration and exploitation of new deposits is coupled with undesirable environmental impact and also with geopolitical conflicts. A question thus arises, to what extent are market mechanisms sufficient to ensure global sustainable supply of raw materials and to what extent do we need economic policy interventions and international arrangements in this area.