Acknowledgment to the Reviewers of Journal of Environmental & Earth Sciences in 2025
2026-02-06
Integrated Planning of New Energy Systems: Environmental Trade-Offs and Sustainability Pathways
Authors
-
Jiangtao Ma
PowerChina International Group Limited, Beijing 100037, China
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30564/jees.v8i7.13291Abstract
The rapid transition toward low-carbon energy systems is creating increasingly complex and interconnected energy structures characterized by high shares of renewable energy, sector coupling, and advanced conversion and storage technologies. To manage these systems while achieving decarbonization, security, reliability, and sustainability goals simultaneously, integrated energy system planning has become essential. However, most existing planning studies primarily emphasize techno-economic optimization and greenhouse gas reduction, while long-term environmental impacts and sustainability considerations remain insufficiently addressed. This review provides a comprehensive assessment of integrated planning approaches for new energy systems, with a particular focus on environmental impacts, trade-offs, and sustainability pathways. It examines major planning frameworks, including optimization-based, simulation-based, and hybrid methods, and evaluates how environmental factors are incorporated into system design. Special attention is given to life-cycle assessment, multi-dimensional environmental evaluation, and the role of sector coupling in shaping system-wide environmental outcomes. By comparing environmental trade-offs across sectors, spatial scales, and time horizons, the review highlights inherent tensions between decarbonization objectives, resource consumption, and ecological impacts. Case studies from China, Pakistan, South Korea, and Malaysia illustrate how integrated planning is applied under diverse socio-economic and policy conditions. Finally, the review identifies key research gaps, emphasizing the need for deeper environmental integration, improved data and model connectivity, and pathway-based planning to support environmentally sustainable and resilient energy transitions.
Keywords:
Integrated Energy Planning; New Energy Systems; Environmental Trade-Offs; Sustainability Pathways; Sector CouplingReferences
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Ma, J. (2026). Integrated Planning of New Energy Systems: Environmental Trade-Offs and Sustainability Pathways . Journal of Environmental & Earth Sciences, 8(7), 160–179. https://doi.org/10.30564/jees.v8i7.13291
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