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Greenhouse agriculture is enjoying a surge in popularity to increase food security and use resources efficiently. Less known is that greenhouses consume enormous amounts of energy for heating and lighting. Energy efficiency is paramount in greenhouse production, but choosing the best measures is challenging and depends on climate and energy tariffs. The novelty of this study is to investigate and compare multiple practices and their cumulative impacts in high-latitude greenhouses from energy, cost, and yield points of view. It focuses on simulating the energy consumption and yields in greenhouses under 31 energy-saving scenarios and in two different locations, Copenhagen (Denmark) and Montreal (Quebec, Canada). Various lighting and energy-saving techniques are explored, including high-pressure sodium (HPS) and light-emitting diode (LED) lighting, canopy interlighting, thermal screens, additional envelope insulation, and a heat harvesting system. Greenhouses in Copenhagen consume more energy due to artificial lighting to compensate for low solar radiation in winter. Energy costs are, on average, 77 % higher than in Montreal, partly due to high energy prices. The best scenario regarding energy operational cost per yield for Montreal is LED toplights with thermal screens and envelope insulation, and for Copenhagen it is LED toplights with thermal screens and a heat harvesting system. However, if growers wanted to implement only one measure, the results showed that LED toplights is the best measure to implement for both locations due to its high energy efficiency and minimal impact on yield. These results provide insight into the best energy efficiency measures tailored to specific locations.

The transition from gasoline-powered vehicles (GVs) to electric vehicles (EVs) is crucial for promoting green transportation. However, this transition poses challenges for mobility service providers (MSPs) due to increased operational costs. Motivating MSPs to adopt EVs and minimizing the negative impact on the urban transportation system requires effective strategies. Government agencies (Govs) commonly employ market-oriented instruments (e.g., carbon cap-and-trade schemes) and non-market-oriented instruments (e.g., the installment of emission reduction devices for GVs) to address emission reduction goals. In response to the Gov emission reduction policies, MSPs must decide whether to (i) replace their GVs with EVs and (ii) install emission reduction devices and purchase emission quotas for their GVs. The dynamics of emission quota supply and demand further influence equilibrium carbon prices in the carbon market. To capture the complex interactions between MSPs and the Gov, we propose a bilevel optimization model. Building upon this model, we consider two extensions: First, MSPs have the flexibility to adjust the number of operating vehicles. Second, there are heterogeneous MSPs, with some exclusively owning EVs and others owning GVs. Analytical findings reveal that MSPs benefit from replacing GVs with EVs only when the cost of EV replacement is less than or equal to the monetary benefit obtained by selling excess emission quotas in the carbon market. Moreover, as the Gov imposes stricter regulations, the EV replacement rate is more likely to increase, while the cumulative number of operating vehicles decreases, which ultimately passes on the emission reduction costs to travelers.

202502 bcch ; Version of Record ; RGC ; Others ; Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Commission ; Published ; Elsevier (2025) ; TA