scope:

This Recommendation uses a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model as a possible methodology for simultaneously assessing the environmental and economic impacts of information and communication technologies (ICTs) at the sectoral level.

The CGE model adopts a top-down economic approach using economic input-output tables. Compared to a bottom-up assessment method, it provides a model of the overall environmental impacts at the sectoral level without collecting complex sets of data. Since it uses a macroeconomic approach, the proposed method makes an attempt to capture the economy-wide rebound effects in addition to the primary and secondary effects of ICTs.

As a principle, the CGE model calculates the pricing effects of using ICT services and derives the positive effects of this ICT usage. However, the introduction of ICT services leads to effects which are not directly measurable in terms of costs considering the externalities of environmental effects in the price mechanism. These effects (not measurable in terms of costs) are not evaluated in this version of the Recommendation.

This Recommendation defines an evaluation procedure to be applied when assessing the positive impacts of ICT including (but not limited to) the definition of conditions, the data collection process and reporting obligations.

At this stage, this method aims to assess the positive impacts of ICT at the sectoral level and would need to be adapted to be applied at the organizational level.

This Recommendation also aims to promote the use of a CGE model when evaluating the positive impacts of ICT services and encourages interested organizations to contribute to improve this Recommendation.