ÖZLEM YURTSEVER

Carbon Footprint Analysis with the Emphasis of Neighborhood Emission Distribution: A Case Study of Merzifon District

Abstract

According to the Paris Agreement, the responsibility of tackling global warming should start with local governments. With time running out, carrying out carbon footprint (CF) analysis on a local scale has become urgent. This study carries out CF calculation of Merzifon District, which is located in the central north of Turkey, according to the Global Protocol for Community-scale Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories (GPC). Merzifon, with its airport, ever-growing organized industrial site housing several industries leading in foreign exports in the sectors they are active, high-yielding agricultural land, and a population of over 74,000, has one of the oldest municipalities. As a result, 46.9% of total emissions, including biogenic emissions, are from stationary energy, 29.8% from transportation, 13.6% from agriculture, forestry, and livestock, 7.2%from industrial processes and product use, and 2.5% from waste. This study differs from existing CF calculation studies by focusing on emission distributions from residential stationary energy of each neighborhood. Hence, the priorities of carbon mitigation methods are determined on neighborhood basis. Among the 18 emission mitigation proposals, better insulation alone will result in 10% energy savings in the existing residential building stock.

Biography

Graduated from Marmara University, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, in 2006. She received her Doctorate in Industrial Engineering from the same university in 2019. Between 2011 and 2022, she worked as a lecturer at Marmara University Vocational School of Technical Sciences. She continues to work as an assistant professor. She works on sustainability, carbon footprint, energy, and occupational safety subjects.