Review of the Environmental Performance Index (EPI): Methods, Constraints and Recommendations

Abstract

During the formation of composite index constructs, some constraints are encountered with respect to considerations such as the availability or accessibility of indicators, weights of such indicators, sub-indicators or variables to be used for reaching the indicators, data pertaining to such variables, and the determination of the most convenient method to be used for arranging the data set. In addition, it is required for the methods to be used to comply with the aim of the index to be formed. Researchers who want to develop a composite environmental index are required to consider all these considerations. This study aims to indicate and discuss the composite environmental index formation process through the examination of the EPI, which is a global composite index. One might argue that it contributes to the explanation of the composite index construction process, which has been examined, albeit limitedly, in the literature. Eventually, the methods that may be used in the index formation process by the researchers who want to form a composite index were discussed, and suggestions that may improve the methodological strength of the indices to be developed by them were presented. Our findings indicate the absence of an established theoretical methodology for composite sustainability indices. The creation of these indices has depended entirely on the expertise of the involved researchers. JEL Classification : C30 , C38 , C82

Keywords

• Composite Index
• Weighting Methods
• Indicators
• Sustainability
• Environmental Performance Index

References

1. Alberti, M., & Parker, J. D. (1991). Indices of environmental quality. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 11(2), 95-101. https://doi.org/10.1016/0195-9255(91)90026-G google scholar
2. Barber, M. C. (1994). Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program: Indicator development strategy. In US Environmental Protection Agency (Issue January 2014). google scholar
3. Barnett, V., & Lewıs, T. (1994). Outliers in statistical data (Vol. 3, No). Wiley. google scholar
4. Benito, M., & Romera, R. (2011). Improving quality assessment of composite indicators in university rankings: a case study of French and German universities of excellence. Scientometrics, 89(1), 153-176. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-011-0419-5 google scholar
5. Bj0rn, A., & Hauschild, M. Z. (2015). Introducing carrying capacity-based normalisation in LCA: framework and development of references at midpoint level. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 20(7), 1005-1018. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-015-0899-2 google scholar
6. Cairns, J., & McCormick, P. V. Niederlehner, B. R. (1993). A proposed framework for developing indicators of ecosystem health. Hydrobiologia, 263, 1-44. google scholar
7. Castellani, V., Benini, L., Sala, S., & Pant, R. (2016). A distance-to-target weighting method for Europe 2020. International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 21(8), 1159-1169. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-016-1079-8 google scholar
8. Diaz-Balteiro, L., Belavenutti, P., Ezquerro, M., Gonzalez-Pachon, J., Ribeiro Nobre, S., & Romero, C. (2018). Measuring the sustainability of a natural system by using multi-criteria distance function methods: Some critical issues. Journal of Environmental Management, 214, 197-203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.03.005 google scholar

9. Diaz-Balteiro, L., Gonzalez-Pachon, J., & Romero, C. (2017). Measuring systems sustainability with multi-criteria methods: A critical review. European Journal of Operational Research, 258(2), 607-616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2016.08.075 google scholar
10. Dobbie, M. J., & Dail, D. (2001). Encyclopedia of Environmetrics. In A. H. El-Shaarawi & W. W. Piegorsch (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Environ-metrics. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470057339 google scholar
11. Edwards, R., Hancock, T., & Labonte, R. (1999). Indicators that count! Measuring population health at the community level. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 90(1), 22-26. google scholar
12. Emerson, J., Esty, D. C., Levy, M. A., Kim, C. H., de Sherbinin, A., Srebotnjak, T., Mara, V., & Jaiteh, M. (2010). 2010 Environmental Performance Index. 87. google scholar
13. Emerson, J. W., Hsu, A., Levy, M. A., Sherbinin, A. de, V. Mara, D. C. E., & Jaiteh., M. (2012). 2012 Environmental Performance Index and Pilot Trend Environmental Performance Index. 99. google scholar
14. Esty, D. C., Kim, C., Srebotnjak, T., Levy, M. A., Sherbinin, A. de, & Mara, V. (2008). Environmental performance. 2008 Environmental Performance Index, 82-89. https://doi.org/10.1787/862890ed-en google scholar
15. Eylenbosch, W., & Noah, N. (1988). Surveillance in Health and Disease. Oxford University Press. google scholar
16. Eyles, J., Cole, D., & Gibson, B. (1996). Human Health in Ecosystem Health: Issues of Meaning and Measurement. International Joint Commission (IJC ) Digital Archive, 1-62. http://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ijcarchive%0Ahttp://scholar.uwindsor.ca/ijcarchive google scholar
17. Eyles, J., & Furgal, C. (2002). Indicators in environmental health: Identifying and selecting common sets. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 93(SUPPL. 1). https://doi.org/10.1007/bf03405121 google scholar
18. Feng, C., Wang, H., Lu, N., Chen, T., He, H., Lu, Y., & Tu, X. M. (2014). Log-transformation and its implications for data analysis. Shanghai Archives of Psychiatry, 26(2), 105-109. https://doi.org/10.3969/j.issn.1002-0829.2014.02 google scholar
19. Fischer, S. M., Joy, M. K., Abrahamse, W., Milfont, T. L., & Petherick, L. M. (2022). The Use and Misuse of Composite Environmental Indices. BioRxiv, 2022.03.15.484501. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.03.15.484501 google scholar
20. Freudenberg, M. (2003). Composite indicators of country performance: a critical assessment. OECD Science, Technology and Industry Working Papers, 16(September), 35. https://doi.org/10.1787/405566708255 google scholar
21. Frischknecht, R., & Büsser Knöpfel, S. (2014). Ecological scarcity 2013—new features and its application in industry and administration—54th LCA forum, Ittigen/Berne, Switzerland, December 5, 2013. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 19(6), 1361-1366. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-014-0744-z google scholar
22. Gaddis, M. L., & Gaddis, G. M. (1990). Introduction to biostatistics: Part 1, basic concepts. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 19(1), 86-89. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0196-0644(05)82149-3 google scholar
23. Garrfa-Sanchez, I.-M., Almeida, T. A. D. N., & Camara, R. P D. B. (2015). A proposal for a Composite Index of Environmental Performance (CIEP) for countries. Ecological Indicators, 48, 171-188. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.08.004 google scholar
24. Groeneveld, R. A., & Meeden, G. (1984). Measuring Skewness and Kurtosis. The Statistician, 33(4), 391. https://doi.org/10.2307/2987742 google scholar
25. Hair, J. (2009). Multivariate data analysis. Pearson. google scholar
26. Halpern, B. S., Longo, C., Hardy, D., McLeod, K. L., Samhouri, J. F., Katona, S. K., Kleisner, K., Lester, S. E., O’Leary, J., Ranelletti, M., Rosen-berg, A. A., Scarborough, C., Selig, E. R., Best, B. D., Brumbaugh, D. R., Chapin, F. S., Crowder, L. B., Daly, K. L., Doney, S. C., . . . Zeller, D. (2012). An index to assess the health and benefits of the global ocean. Nature, 488(7413), 615-620. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature11397 google scholar
27. Hermans, E., Van den Bossche, F., & Wets, G. (2008). Combining road safety information in a performance index. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 40(4), 1337-1344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2008.02.004 google scholar
28. Hsu, A., L.A. Johnson, and A. L. (2013). Measuring Progress: A Practical Guide From the Developers of the Environmental Performance Index (EPI). 80. http://epi.yale.edu/content/measuring-progress-practical-guide-developers-environmental-performance-index-epi google scholar
29. Hsu, A., Emerson, J., Levy, M., Sherbinin, A. de, Johnson, L., Malik, O., Schwartz, J., & Jaiteh., M. (2014). 2014 Environmental Performance Index. Wiley StatsRef: Statistics Reference Online. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118445112.stat03789 google scholar
30. Hsu, A., Lloyd, A., & Emerson, J. W. (2013). What progress have we made since Rio? Results from the 2012 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) and Pilot Trend EPI. Environmental Science and Policy, 33, 171-185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2013.05.011 google scholar
31. Ibanez-Fores, V., Bovea, M. D., & Perez-Belis, V. (2014). A holistic review of applied methodologies for assessing and se-lecting the optimal technological alternative from a sustainability perspective. Journal of Cleaner Production, 70, 259-281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.01.082 google scholar
32. J. H. Curtiss. (1943). On Transformations Used in the Analysis of Variance. 14(2), 107-122. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2235813 google scholar
33. Jennifer Anne Haley. (2001). Information To Users. Dissertation, 274. google scholar
34. Kondyli, J. (2010). Measurement and evaluation of sustainable development. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 30(6), 347-356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2009.08.006 google scholar
35. Kowalski, J., & Tu, X. M. (2008). Modern applied U-statistics. John Wiley & Sons. google scholar
36. Kwatra, S., Kumar, A., & Sharma, P. (2020). A critical review of studies related to construction and computation of Sustainable Development Indices. Ecological Indicators, 112(January), 106061. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2019.106061 google scholar
37. Lankoski, J., & Lankoski, L. (2023). Environmental sustainability in agriculture: Identification of bottlenecks. Ecological Economics, 204(PA), 107656. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2022.107656 google scholar
38. Li, X., Su, S., Shi, J., & Zhang, Z. (2015). An environmental impact assessment framework and index system for the pre-use phase of buildings based on distance-to-target approach. Building and Environment, 85, 173-181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2014.11.035 google scholar
39. Lin, M., Zhang, S., & Chen, Y. (2005). Distance-to-Target Weighting in Life Cycle Impact Assessment Based on Chinese Environmental Policy for the Period 1995-2005 (6 pp). The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 10(6), 393-398. https://doi.org/10.1065/lca2004.10.185 google scholar
40. Mendola, D., & Volo, S. (2017). Building composite indicators in tourism studies: Measurements and applications in tourism destination competitiveness. Tourism Management, 59, 541-553. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2016.08.011 google scholar
41. Moldan, B., Janouskova, S., & Hak, T. (2012). How to understand and measure environmental sustainability: Indicators and targets. Ecological Indicators, 17, 4-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2011.04.033 google scholar
42. Munda, G., & Saisana, M. (2011). Methodological Considerations on Regional Sustainability Assessment Based on Multicriteria and Sensitivity Analysis. Regional Studies, 45(2), 261-276. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343401003713316 google scholar
43. Olsen, G. W., Church, T. R., Miller, J. P., Burris, J. M., Hansen, K. J., Lundberg, J. K., Armitage, J. B., Herron, R. M., Medhdizadehkashi, Z., Nobiletti, J. B., O’Neil, E. M., Mandel, J. H., & Zobel, L. R. (2003). Perfluorooctanesulfonate and other fluorochemicals in the serum of American Red Cross adult blood donors. Environmental Health Perspectives, 111(16), 1892-1901. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.6316 google scholar
44. Papadimitriou, E., Neves, A. R., & Saisana, M. (2020). JRC statistical audit of the 2020 environmental performance index. https://doi.org/10.2760/849820 google scholar
45. Pollesch, N. L., & Dale, V. H. (2016). Normalization in sustainability assessment: Methods and implications. Ecological Economics, 130, 195-208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2016.06.018 google scholar
46. Quaddus, M. A., & Siddique, M. A. B. (2001). Modelling sustainable development planning: A multicriteria decision conferencing approach. Environment International, 27(2–3), 89–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0160-4120(01)00066-6 google scholar
47. Reisi, M., Aye, L., Rajabifard, A., & Ngo, T. (2014). Transport sustainability index: Melbourne case study. Ecological Indicators, 43, 288-296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.03.004 google scholar
48. Ruiz, F., El Gibari, S., Cabello, J. M., & Gomez, T. (2020). MRP-WSCI: Multiple reference point based weak and strong composite indicators. Omega (United Kingdom), 95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.omega.2019.04.003 google scholar
49. Saaty, T. L. (1977). A scaling method for priorities in hierarchical structures. Journal of Mathematical Psychology, 15(3), 234-281. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-2496(77)90033-5 google scholar
50. Saaty, T. L. (1988). What is the Analytic Hierarchy Process? In Mathematical Models for Decision Support (pp. 109-121). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-83555-1_5 google scholar
51. Saisana, M., Saltelli, A., & Tarantola, S. (2005). Uncertainty and Sensitivity Analysis Techniques as Tools for the Quality Assessment of Composite Indicators. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A: Statistics in Society, 168(2), 307-323. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-985X.2005.00350.x google scholar
52. Saisana, M., & Tarantola, S. (2002). State-of-the-art report on current methodologies and practices for composite indicator development Institute for the Protection and Security of the Citizen State-of-the-art Report on Current Methodologies and Practices for Composite Indicator Development. Eu, July, 1-72. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.1505.1762 google scholar
53. Schober, P., Schwarte, L. A., & Boer, C. (2018). Correlation coefficients: Appropriate use and interpretation. Anesthesia and Analgesia, 126(5), 1763-1768. https://doi.org/10.1213/ANE.0000000000002864 google scholar
54. Singh, R. K., Murty, H. R., Gupta, S. K., & Dikshit, A. K. (2009). An overview of sustainability assessment methodologies. Ecological Indicators, 9(2), 189-212. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2008.05.011 google scholar
55. Smallenbroek, O., Caperna, O., & Papadimitriou, G. (2023). JRC audit of the Environmental Performance Index 2022. https://doi.org/10.2760/381247 google scholar
56. Srebotnjak, T. (2007). The role of environmental statisticians in environmental policy: the case of performance measurement. Environmental Science and Policy, 10(5), 405-418. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2007.02.002 google scholar
57. Valipour, M., Ziatabar Ahmadi, M., Raeini-Sarjaz, M., Gholami Sefidkouhi, M. A., Shahnazari, A., Fazlola, R., & Darzi-Naftchali, A. (2015). Agricultural water management in the world during past half century. Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science, 61(5), 657-678. https://doi.org/10.1080/03650340.2014.944903 google scholar
58. Von Schirnding Y.E.R. (1997). Indicators for Policy and Decision-making in Environmental Health. Draft report prepared for the Office of Global and Integrated Environmental Health. World Health Organization. google scholar
59. Wang, H., Hou, P., Zhang, H., & Weng, D. (2011). Towards Life Cycle Sustainability Management. In M. Finkbeiner (Ed.), Towards Life Cycle Sustainability Management (Issue July 2011). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1899-9 google scholar
60. WEF. (2002). Pilot Environment Performance Index. World Economic Forum: Annual Meeting, An Initiative of the Global Leaders of Tomorrow Environment Task Force. google scholar
61. Wendling, Z. A., Emerson, J. W., de Sherbinin, A., & Esty, D. C. (2020). Environmental Performance Index 2020: Country Profile Egypt. 2-4. google scholar
62. Wendling, Z. A., Emerson, J. W., Esty, D. C., Levy, M. A., & de Sherbinin, A. (2018). 2018 Environmental Performance Index. google scholar
63. Wolf, M. J., Emerson, J. W., Esty, D. C., Sherbinin, A., & Wendling, Z. A. (2022). Environmental Performance Index 2022: Ranking country performance on sustainability issues Summary for Policymakers. In Report: Summary for Policymakers. epi.yale.edu google scholar