IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i5p2485-d505797.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Measuring the Level of Environmental Performance on Coastal Environment before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study from Cyprus

Author

Listed:
  • Pantelitsa Loizia

    (Department of Research & Development (ENVITECH), Institute of Environmental Technology and Sustainable Development, P.O. Box 34073, 5309 Paralimni, Cyprus
    Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Engineering Sustainability, Environmental Conservation and Management, Open University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 12794, 2252 Latsia, Nicosia, Cyprus)

  • Irene Voukkali

    (Department of Research & Development (ENVITECH), Institute of Environmental Technology and Sustainable Development, P.O. Box 34073, 5309 Paralimni, Cyprus
    Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Engineering Sustainability, Environmental Conservation and Management, Open University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 12794, 2252 Latsia, Nicosia, Cyprus)

  • Georgia Chatziparaskeva

    (Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Engineering Sustainability, Environmental Conservation and Management, Open University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 12794, 2252 Latsia, Nicosia, Cyprus)

  • Jose Navarro-Pedreño

    (Department of Agrochemistry and Environment, University Miguel Hernández of Elche (UMH), Avenida Universidad s/n Edificio Alcudia, 03202 Elche, Spain)

  • Antonis A. Zorpas

    (Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Engineering Sustainability, Environmental Conservation and Management, Open University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 12794, 2252 Latsia, Nicosia, Cyprus)

Abstract

Tourism activities are considered, among others, the backbone of the local economies. However, tourism activities lead to adverse environmental impacts, especially in coastal zones. Coastal areas are considered and recognized as of strategic importance due to the fact that several activities take place, from leisure to business. At the same time, coastal areas are under pressure from tourist activities, and the waste generated is a very serious issue. Therefore, there are limited studies related to the environmental dimensions of the COVID-19 pandemic in the coastal environment. This paper provides answers to the hypothesis that the pandemic lockdown scenario would improve environmental performance due to reduced usage and, therefore, waste, taking into account specific key performance indicators (KPIs) as these KPIs are used to evaluate the performance of an area. The results showed that the study area improved, as did the selected KPIs, i.e., clean coast index (CCI), waste accumulation rate (WAR), and waste accumulation index (WAI). Additionally, according to the final results, the concentration of micro-, meso- and macroplastics on the beach reduced, and the main issues remained the solutions on cigarette butts, straws, and other plastic containers. Furthermore, the final results are considered very useful to local authorities, stakeholders, consultants, policymakers, and any other competent authorities, to reschedule their waste management strategies, to improve waste infrastructures and their level of services (LOS), as well as, to suggest frequent awareness-raising activities to their visitors on how to protect the coastal environment, taking into account a pandemic scenario, as well as, the policy alternative impacts on EU coastal zones 2000–2050.

Suggested Citation

  • Pantelitsa Loizia & Irene Voukkali & Georgia Chatziparaskeva & Jose Navarro-Pedreño & Antonis A. Zorpas, 2021. "Measuring the Level of Environmental Performance on Coastal Environment before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study from Cyprus," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-24, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:5:p:2485-:d:505797
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/5/2485/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/5/2485/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. G. P. Peters & R. M. Andrew & J. G. Canadell & P. Friedlingstein & R. B. Jackson & J. I. Korsbakken & C. Quéré & A. Peregon, 2020. "Carbon dioxide emissions continue to grow amidst slowly emerging climate policies," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 3-6, January.
    2. Antonis A. Zorpas & Aspasia Saranti, 2016. "Multi-criteria analysis of sustainable environmental clean technologies for the treatment of winery's wastewater," International Journal of Global Environmental Issues, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 15(1/2), pages 151-168.
    3. Klemeš, Jiří Jaromír & Fan, Yee Van & Tan, Raymond R. & Jiang, Peng, 2020. "Minimising the present and future plastic waste, energy and environmental footprints related to COVID-19," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    4. Ilaria Rodella & Fabio Albino Madau & Donatella Carboni, 2020. "The Willingness to Pay for Beach Scenery and Its Preservation in Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-28, February.
    5. Michail Tsangas & Mejdi Jeguirim & Lionel Limousy & Antonis Zorpas, 2019. "The Application of Analytical Hierarchy Process in Combination with PESTEL-SWOT Analysis to Assess the Hydrocarbons Sector in Cyprus," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-17, February.
    6. Vasileios Zisimopoulos & Antonis Zorpas & Maria Zouridaki, 2015. "Proposed Certification Standard For The Sustainable Management And Development Of Mediterranean Beaches," Tourism Research Institute, Journal of Tourism Research, vol. 11(1), pages 127-138, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sotirios Kavouras & Ioannis Vardopoulos & Roido Mitoula & Antonis A. Zorpas & Panagiotis Kaldis, 2022. "Occupational Health and Safety Scope Significance in Achieving Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-17, February.
    2. Abdulmajeed Almadhi & Abdelhakim Abdelhadi & Rakan Alyamani, 2023. "Moving from Linear to Circular Economy in Saudi Arabia: Life-Cycle Assessment on Plastic Waste Management," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-22, July.
    3. Idiano D’Adamo & Rocío González-Sánchez & Maria Sonia Medina-Salgado & Davide Settembre-Blundo, 2021. "Methodological Perspective for Assessing European Consumers’ Awareness of Cybersecurity and Sustainability in E-Commerce," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-10, October.
    4. Lee Tin Sin & Vineshaa Balakrishnan & Soo-Tueen Bee & Soo-Ling Bee, 2023. "A Review of the Current State of Microplastic Pollution in South Asian Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-50, April.
    5. Patricia Moreno-Casasola & Marisa Luisa Martínez & Debora Lithgow, 2021. "New Beach Landscapes to Promote Social Distancing and Coastal Conservation during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-19, June.
    6. Ashish Dwivedi & Dindayal Agrawal & Ajay Jha & Massimo Gastaldi & Sanjoy Kumar Paul & Idiano D’Adamo, 2021. "Addressing the Challenges to Sustainable Initiatives in Value Chain Flexibility: Implications for Sustainable Development Goals," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 22(2), pages 179-197, December.
    7. Bohara Bikash & Masaru Ichihashi, 2022. "Household Preferences for Improved Solid Waste Management (SWM) Services: A Randomized Conjoint Analysis in Kathmandu Metropolitan Ward No. 10," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-15, February.
    8. Antonis A. Zorpas & Maria K. Doula & Mejdi Jeguirim, 2021. "Waste Strategies Development in the Framework of Circular Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-5, December.
    9. Ioannis Vardopoulos & Ioannis Vannas & George Xydis & Constantinos Vassiliades, 2023. "Homeowners’ Perceptions of Renewable Energy and Market Value of Sustainable Buildings," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-18, May.

    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. Ayomikun Bello & Anastasia Ivanova & Alexey Cheremisin, 2023. "A Comprehensive Review of the Role of CO 2 Foam EOR in the Reduction of Carbon Footprint in the Petroleum Industry," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-20, January.
    2. Iliana Papamichael & Irene Voukkali & Mejdi Jeguirim & Nikolaos Argirusis & Salah Jellali & Georgia Sourkouni & Christos Argirusis & Antonis A. Zorpas, 2022. "End-of-Life Management and Recycling on PV Solar Energy Production," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-5, September.
    3. Veknesh Arumugam & Ismail Abdullah & Irwan Syah Md Yusoff & Nor Liza Abdullah & Ramli Mohd Tahir & Ahadi Mohd Nasir & Ammar Ehsan Omar & Muhammad Heikal Ismail, 2021. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Solid Waste Generation in the Perspectives of Socioeconomic and People’s Behavior: A Case Study in Serdang, Malaysia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-11, November.
    4. Min Su & Qiang Wang & Rongrong Li, 2021. "How to Dispose of Medical Waste Caused by COVID-19? A Case Study of China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-18, November.
    5. Teng, Sin Yong & Orosz, Ákos & How, Bing Shen & Jansen, Jeroen J. & Friedler, Ferenc, 2023. "Retrofit heat exchanger network optimization via graph-theoretical approach: Pinch-bounded N-best solutions allows positional swapping," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 283(C).
    6. Tomasz Wołowiec & Iuliia Myroshnychenko & Ihor Vakulenko & Sylwester Bogacki & Anna Maria Wiśniewska & Svitlana Kolosok & Vitaliy Yunger, 2022. "International Impact of COVID-19 on Energy Economics and Environmental Pollution: A Scoping Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-26, November.
    7. Zhong, Chao & Tan, Jiqiu & Zuo, Hongyan & Wu, Xin & Wang, Shaoli & Liu, Junan, 2021. "Synergy effects analysis on CDPF regeneration performance enhancement and NOx concentration reduction of NH3–SCR over Cu–ZSM–5," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 230(C).
    8. Ángel Galán-Martín & Daniel Vázquez & Selene Cobo & Niall Dowell & José Antonio Caballero & Gonzalo Guillén-Gosálbez, 2021. "Delaying carbon dioxide removal in the European Union puts climate targets at risk," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-12, December.
    9. Clavijo-Buritica, Nicolás & Triana-Sanchez, Laura & Escobar, John Willmer, 2023. "A hybrid modeling approach for resilient agri-supply network design in emerging countries: Colombian coffee supply chain," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    10. Mohannad Alkhraijah & Maad Alowaifeer & Mansour Alsaleh & Anas Alfaris & Daniel K. Molzahn, 2021. "The Effects of Social Distancing on Electricity Demand Considering Temperature Dependency," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-14, January.
    11. Walter Leal Filho & Amanda Lange Salvia & Arminda Paço & Celia Dias-Ferreira & Samara Neiva & Izabela Simon Rampasso & Rosley Anholon & Claudio Ruy Portela de Vasconcelos & João Henrique Paulino Pires, 2022. "Assessing the Connections between COVID-19 and Waste Management in Brazil," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-19, July.
    12. Castañeda-Ayarza, Juan Arturo & Godoi, Beatriz Araújo, 2021. "Macro-environmental influence on the development of Brazilian fuel ethanol between 1975 and 2019," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    13. Masood S. Alivand & Omid Mazaheri & Yue Wu & Ali Zavabeti & Andrew J. Christofferson & Nastaran Meftahi & Salvy P. Russo & Geoffrey W. Stevens & Colin A. Scholes & Kathryn A. Mumford, 2022. "Engineered assembly of water-dispersible nanocatalysts enables low-cost and green CO2 capture," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-11, December.
    14. Wen, W. & Yang, S. & Zhou, P. & Gao, S.Z., 2021. "Impacts of COVID-19 on the electric vehicle industry: Evidence from China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    15. Isabella Georgiou & Serena Caucci & Jonathan Clive Morris & Edeltraud Guenther & Peter Krebs, 2023. "Assessing the Potential of Water Reuse Uptake Through a Private–Public Partnership: a Practitioner’s Perspective," Circular Economy and Sustainability, Springer, vol. 3(1), pages 199-220, March.
    16. Kim, Dongwoo & Yim, Taesu & Lee, Jae Yong, 2021. "Analytical study on changes in domestic hot water use caused by COVID-19 pandemic," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    17. Kemfert, Claudia & Präger, Fabian & Braunger, Isabell & Hoffart, Franziska M. & Brauers, Hanna, 2022. "The expansion of natural gas infrastructure puts energy transitions at risk," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 7, pages 582-587.
    18. Masoomeh Zeinalnezhad & Abdoulmohammad Gholamzadeh Chofreh & Feybi Ariani Goni & Jiří Jaromír Klemeš & Emelia Sari, 2020. "Simulation and Improvement of Patients’ Workflow in Heart Clinics during COVID-19 Pandemic Using Timed Coloured Petri Nets," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-18, November.
    19. Emine Elmaslar Özbaş & Özcan Akın & Sinan Güneysu & H. Kurtuluş Özcan & Atakan Öngen, 2022. "Changes occurring in consumption habits of people during COVID-19 pandemic and the water footprint," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(6), pages 8504-8520, June.
    20. Zhang, Hongji & Ding, Tao & Sun, Yuge & Huang, Yuhan & He, Yuankang & Huang, Can & Li, Fangxing & Xue, Chen & Sun, Xiaoqiang, 2023. "How does load-side re-electrification help carbon neutrality in energy systems: Cost competitiveness analysis and life-cycle deduction," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).

    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:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:5:p:2485-:d:505797. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.