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A Study of the Drivers of Decarbonization in the Plastics Supply Chain in the Post-COVID-19 Era

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  • Changping Zhao

    (School of Economics and Management, Yan’an University, Yan’an 716000, China
    Tianhua College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai 201815, China)

  • Juanjuan Sun

    (College of Maritime Economic and Management, Dalian Maritime University (DMU), Dalian 116026, China)

  • Yun Zhang

    (China Triumph International Engineering Co., Ltd., Shanghai 200060, China)

Abstract

Plastics are an important basic material for national economic development. In the post-COVID-19 stage, green supply chain management has attracted widespread attention. In order to achieve carbon neutrality in the plastics industry, we explored the drivers of supply chain decarbonization in the plastics industry from a microlevel corporate supply chain perspective. Four primary factors and 21 subfactors were identified from the existing literature, and after validation by 12 experts, the causal relationships between the factors were analyzed using the Gray-DEMATEL method. The Gray-DEMATEL method was applied to analyze the causal relationships between the factors. The findings show that joint promotion by stakeholders is the most significant cause driver and market impact is the most prominent driver in the first-level indicator, both of which have a significant impact on low-carbon production. “Process optimization”, “Top-management support”, “Government regulations and support”, and “Information disclosure” are the most significant cause secondary drivers under the corresponding Tier 1 indicator factors, respectively, to provide realistic guidance for companies engaged in the plastics industry to continue to develop a low-carbon circular economy to achieve net-zero emissions under the challenges of COVID-19. Therefore, companies need to focus on the drivers of most importance in this work and understand the interplay between factors.

Suggested Citation

  • Changping Zhao & Juanjuan Sun & Yun Zhang, 2022. "A Study of the Drivers of Decarbonization in the Plastics Supply Chain in the Post-COVID-19 Era," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-20, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:23:p:15858-:d:987052
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jörn H. Block & Pramodita Sharma & Lena Benz, 2024. "Stakeholder Pressures and Decarbonization Strategies in Mittelstand Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 193(3), pages 511-533, September.

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