Estimation of the carbon footprint of the Galician fishing activity (NW Spain)

The food production system as a whole is recognized as one of the major contributors to environmental impacts. Accordingly, food production, processing, transport and consumption account for a relevant portion of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with any country. In this context, there is an increasing market demand for climate-relevant information regarding the global warming impact of consumer food products throughout the supply chains. This article deals with the assessment of the carbon footprint of seafood products as a key subgroup in the food sector. Galicia (NW Spain) was selected as a case study. The analysis is based on a representative set of species within the Galician fishing sector, including species obtained from coastal fishing (e.g. horse mackerel, Atlantic mackerel, European pilchard and blue whiting), offshore fishing (e.g. European hake, megrim and anglerfish), deep-sea fishing (skipjack and yellowfin tuna), extensive aquaculture (mussels) and intensive aquaculture (turbot).The carbon footprints associated with the production-related activities of each selected species were quantified following a business-to-business approach on the basis of 1 year of fishing activity. These individual carbon footprints were used to calculate the carbon footprint for each of the different Galician fisheries and culture activities. Finally, the lump sum of the carbon footprints for coastal, offshore and deep-sea fishing and extensive and intensive aquaculture brought about the carbon footprint of the Galician fishing activity (i.e., capture and culture). A benchmark for quantifying and communicating emission reductions was then provided, and opportunities to reduce the GHG emissions associated with the Galician fishing activity could be prioritized.     

Towards a common carbon footprint assessment methodology for the water sector

This paper describes the carbon footprint methodology used in assessing the global warming potential of the Dutch water sector. The assessment includes CO₂ emissions from energy consumption and methane and nitrous oxide emissions from water treatment processes. There is, however, debate on the amounts and mechanism of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and a standardised approach is discussed. As a result of this approach, the contribution of GHG emissions to the total carbon footprint of the Dutch water sector appeared to be relatively high. Next to the lack of common emission factors for GHG and chemicals used, there is also no agreed‐upon approach related to the system boundaries and scope of carbon footprinting of the water cycle. For reasons of benchmarking and monitoring of climate change reduction targets, a common carbon footprint assessment methodology for the water sector will be required.     

A model to control environmental performance of project execution process based on greenhouse gas emissions using earned value management

In response to recent climate change, which is believed to be attributed to the release of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, many countries are placing CO2 abatement programs such as carbon tax and cap-and-trade. Projects do have a significant share in GHGs and therefore their environmental performance, like their schedule and cost performance, should be monitored and controlled. Although many large projects would pass an environmental assessment in the project evaluation phase, the issue of environmental performance monitoring during the project execution phase has not been addressed in project management methodologies. The objective of this paper is to develop a model to estimate project GHG emissions, and to measure project GHG performance using the developed metrics, which can be used at any point in time over the life of a project. A comprehensive study is conducted to collect information on GHG emission factors of various project activity data (such as material use, energy and fuel consumption, transportation, etc.), and a user form interface is developed to calculate the total GHG of an activity. Also, a breakdown structure is proposed which supports managing all the project GHG accounts. The monitoring and control model is formulated based on the logic used in earned value management (EVM) methodology. The proposed model is then implemented to a work package of a real construction project. The results present the project initial GHG plan and show that the model is able to calculate project GHG variance by the reporting date and predict project final GHG based on a project GHG performance index. The method presented in this paper is general and can be applied to any type of projects in an organization that aims to reduce its carbon footprint. The same structure can be applied to monitor and control any other environmental impact associated with project execution process.     

Corrigendum to “A model to control environmental performance of project execution process based on greenhouse gas emissions using earned value management” [Int. J. Proj. Manag. 36 (3) (April 2018) 397-413]

Abstract was revised as follows:In response to recent climate change, which is believed to be attributed to the release of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, many countries are placing CO₂ abatement programs such as carbon tax and cap-and-trade. Projects do have a significant share in GHGs and therefore their environmental performance, like their schedule and cost performance, should be monitored and controlled. Although many large projects would pass an environmental assessment in the project evaluation phase, the issue of environmental performance monitoring during the project execution phase has not been addressed in project management methodologies. The objective of this paper is to develop a model to estimate project GHG emissions, and to measure project GHG performance using the developed metrics, which can be used at any point in time over the life of a project. A comprehensive study is conducted to collect information on GHG emission factors of various project activity data (such as material use, energy and fuel consumption, transportation, etc.), and a user form interface is developed to calculate the total GHG of an activity. Also, a breakdown structure is proposed which supports managing all the project GHG accounts. The monitoring and control model is formulated based on the logic used in earned value management (EVM) methodology. The proposed model is then implemented to a work package of a real construction project. The results present the project initial GHG plan and show that the model is able to calculate project GHG variance by the reporting date and predict project final GHG based on a project GHG performance index. The method presented in this paper is general and can be applied to any type of projects in an organization that aims to reduce its carbon footprint. The same structure can be applied to monitor and control any other environmental impact associated with project execution process.     

Sheep grazing in ‘lawnscape’ management: an emissions comparison with conventional ‘lawnscape’ management

The use of sheep in lawnscape management is touted as a low-carbon alternative to conventional lawnscaping; however this claim remains unsubstantiated. While conventional lawnscaping generates greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, primarily through fuel combustion, sheep grazing produces methane (CH₄) as well as manure which releases embodied nitrogen as nitrous oxide (N₂O) as it degrades. These gases have a carbon equivalency of 25 and 298 respectively, indicating their much greater potency as GHGs relative to carbon dioxide (CO₂). This paper is the first to critically profile and compare GHG emissions produced by grazing and conventional lawnscape management. It discusses critical factors affecting the carbon footprint of both practices, and develops a framework for evaluating lawnscape management emissions. This study finds that replacing lawnmowers and the treatment and application of compost with a grazing regime can reduce net lawnscape management emissions by 34–37%, or 980 kgCO₂e/ha/year.     

Global warming potential of wheat production in Western Australia: a life cycle assessment

This study presents a greenhouse gas (GHG) life cycle assessment of 1 tonne of wheat transported to port in south-western Australia, including emissions from prefarm, onfarm and postfarm stages. The prefarm stage included GHG emissions from agricultural machinery, fertiliser and pesticide production. The onfarm stage included GHG emissions from diesel use, liming and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions from N fertiliser applications. The postfarm stage included grain storage and transportation to the port. GHG emissions decreased from 487 to 304 kg carbon dioxide (CO₂) equivalents when we used regional-specific data for N₂O emissions instead of the IPCC default value for the application of synthetic N fertilisers to land (1.0%). Fertiliser production in the prefarm stage contributed significantly (35%) to GHG, followed by onfarm CO₂ emissions (27%) and emissions from transportation of inputs and wheat (12%). N₂O emissions from paddock represented 9% of the total GHGs emitted. We recommend utilising regionally specific data for soil N₂O emissions, rather than international default values, when assessing GHG for agricultural production systems.     

Green Eco-District Regulatory Plan Decision Tool–Carbon Accounting Standard Protocol

Green eco-district planning and construction occupies a very important position in China's future low carbon urbanization roadmap because the experience gained through practice will provide cities with a technical pathway to manage climate change and reduce carbon emissions. However, during the current preparation and implementation stage of the green eco-district plans, both the planning management departments and planning design institutes are faced with the problem of how to quantify the greenhouse gases(GHG) emissions, especially the CO_2 emissions, when approval decisions are to be made. Aiming at setting up a carbon accounting protocol within the statutory framework of China's green eco-district planning and construction management system, this paper argues that it is important to incorporate the GHG emission inventory into the statutory regulatory planning system, and discusses the technical issues and coping measures for assessing carbon emissions at the district level. It proposes to refine the Activity Data(AD) and Emission Factors(EF) in the current China's National GHG Inventory and set up the urban district carbon accounting protocol based on nine sectors. These nine emission accounting sectors are established according to the key policy and function as defined in the statutory local regulatory plans under the present planning system in Chinese cities. Taking planning and construction management at the district level as a platform to control carbon emissions, it develops an initial carbon accounting protocol suitable for China's green eco-districts which can be applied in both the existing and planned urban areas, and be integrated into the decision making process of the local planning process.     

Including greenhouse gas emissions during benchmarking of wastewater treatment plant control strategies

The main objective of this paper is to demonstrate how greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can be quantified during the evaluation of control strategies in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). A modified version of the IWA Benchmark Simulation Model No 2 (BSM2G) is hereby used as a simulation case study. Thus, the traditional effluent quality index (EQI), operational cost index (OCI) and time in violation (TIV) used to evaluate control strategies in WWTP are complemented with a new dimension dealing with GHG emissions. The proposed approach is based on a set of comprehensive models that estimate all potential on-site and off-site sources of GHG emissions. The case study investigates the overall performance of several control strategies and demonstrates that substantial reductions in effluent pollution, operating costs and GHG emissions can be achieved when automatic control is implemented. Furthermore, the study is complemented with a scenario analysis that examines the role of i) the dissolved oxygen (DO) set-point, ii) the sludge retention time (SRT) and iii) the organic carbon/nitrogen ratio (COD/N) as promoters of GHG emissions. The results of this study show the potential mechanisms that promote the formation of CO₂, CH₄ and N₂O when different operational strategies are implemented, the existing synergies and trade-offs amongst the EQI, the OCI and TIV criteria and finally the need to reach a compromise solution to achieve an optimal plant performance.     

A greenhouse gas assessment of a stadium in Australia

A greenhouse gas (GHG) life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed on a stadium used for sporting events in a subtropical region in Australia. Inventories for the construction and operation of a stadium are presented and the GHG emissions from construction, operations and end-of-life waste management are assessed against the attendance of one person at one event. The inclusion of additional economic activities, patron travel, LCA methodology, attendance and stadium life-time assumptions are likely to affect the overall magnitude of the GHG emissions of one person's attendance. The assessment shows that the stadium operation accounted for 72.5% of GHG emissions, with the operation of baseload heating, ventilation and cooling, lighting and refrigeration systems dominating. The best opportunity to reduce GHG emissions is to reduce the need for the continual operation of these systems. Construction impacts account for 24.7% of impacts, while replacement materials, end-of-life management of materials are relatively insignificant, contributing to less than 3% of life cycle GHG emissions.     

国外城市区域温室气体清单编制对我国城乡规划的启示

城乡规划作为应对气候变化的政策平台,城市规划决策者需要有能力明确指出相关的基本排放数据:包括不同规划方案产生的温室气体排放量、规划范围的主要排放源头,排放结构等,编制减少温室气体排放的指标,作为行动计划实施的依据.要科学地建设低碳城市,以城乡规划建设政策控制温室气体排放,温室气体清单编制是十分重要的基础规划要求.但目前我国以地方城市区域为空间单元进行温室气体排放清单研究的工作都还不够,影响了城乡规划和建设领域应对气候变化的政策体系的发展和推进.本文对近年来国外城市或地区温室气体排放清单编制的理论和实践经验进行回顾,以英国的莱斯特市和伦敦市,美国的纽约州和纽约市、及加拿大温哥华市5个尺度规模不同的地方区域近年编制的温室气体清单为例,总结其对我国城市温室气体清单编制工作的参考作用.最后指出对我国城乡规划建设领域温室气体清单编制工作的启示,并提出三个基本方法和原则:(1)城乡规划建设政策职能匹配;(2)明确解释城乡空间边界的影响;(3)减排目标与进度成果数据公开.     

Assessing the marginal cost of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the English and Welsh water and sewerage industry: A parametric approach

Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions involves effort from different sectors of the economy, including the water and sewerage industry. This study estimates the marginal cost of curtailing GHG emissions in the water and sewerage industry using stochastic frontier analysis techniques for a sample of ten English and Welsh water and sewerage companies over the 2010–2019 period. Results illustrated that the average marginal cost of reducing GHG emissions was 0.181 £/Kg CO₂ equivalent. The marginal cost estimated notably differs across companies and over time. Findings further illustrate the impact of water companies' operating characteristics on the marginal cost of reducing carbon emissions.     

Greenhouse gas emission monitoring system for manufacturing prefabricated components

Excessive greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from construction stage pose an obvious and emerging challenge. Most previous studies on emissions from the construction phase only focused on emission prediction in advance of the actual construction activities or on quantitative analysis after building construction. A system that enables builders to monitor emissions from construction activities in real time is still lacked, although GHG emission monitoring (GEM) and analysis are considered as the top activities that must be performed to minimize excessive environmental impacts. As an initial exploration, this paper proposes a GEM system based on Internet of things (IoT) technology to real-time monitor emissions when manufacturing prefabricated components. In this system, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sensors are adopted to identify the component ID, and the corresponding material usage data are extracted from a database that is preset in the GEM system. Laser sensors are installed in the components production line to measure the running time of equipment so that energy usage can be calculated in real time. In addition, a data service platform was developed to implement wireless data transmission from production line to computing platform, where the monitoring results are visually presented. A production line of real-life prefabricated components in China is adopted to demonstrate that the IoT-based monitoring system can acquire and analyze real-time carbon emission data from the manufacturing process. The results indicate that GEM system can facilitate project teams to timely control irregular emissions, identify potential emission risks and explore possible strategies for minimizing carbon emissions in the construction sector.     

天津京蓟圣光万豪酒店运营碳足迹研究

以国内首家三星级绿色建筑运行标识酒店——天津京蓟圣光万豪酒店为例构建了酒店运行阶段碳足迹模型,引入了客人碳足迹对酒店客人人均碳排放指标进行量化,并开发了碳足迹记录软件。本酒店理论碳减排19.7%,经过全年实际运营数据分析,酒店能源消耗碳排放强度为105.25 kgCO_2/(m~2·a),较普通酒店碳排放降低了35.63%,客房区域客人碳排强度为10.32~15.51 kgCO_2/(p·a),酒店客人人均碳排放强度为48.76 kgCO_2/(p·a),空调碳排放和照明碳排放是降低酒店碳排放的重点,研究内容为探索低碳酒店运行提供了参考。     

Input–output analysis of Irish construction sector greenhouse gas emissions

Ireland is committed to limiting its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 113% of 1990 levels over the period 2008–12 and to 84% of 2005 levels by 2020 under the Kyoto Agreement and the EU's 2020 target by 2020 respectively. National policies have targeted many industry sectors but have failed to directly tackle GHG emissions associated with construction activity. This paper estimates energy and GHG emissions intensities of the Irish construction sector and subsectors and estimates its contribution to Irish national emissions. This information is used to identify and assess the impacts of policy measures which would result in a reduction in emissions from the sector in a cost-effective manner. Energy and emissions intensities are estimated using input–output analysis techniques applied to Irish construction sector.     

Fighting Traffic: The Dawn of the Motor Age in the American City

Problem: Suburban areas have an important role to play in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, yet little is known about the magnitude of reductions that can be expected or which strategies are most promising. Local GHG reduction strategies are often capital investments such as new green buildings, ignoring the promise of operational strategies.

Purpose: The research is intended to support local planning efforts for GHG reduction in areas where land uses are separated and transit use is low. It is also intended to contribute to the dialogue on the potential for local actions versus broader state, federal, or international initiatives.

Methods: Using the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (CPP) campus in eastern Los Angeles County as a case study, this ex ante evaluation estimates the cost effectiveness of eight capital and operating GHG-reduction strategies. It uses locally developed estimation methods in combination with the Clean Air-Cool Planet GHG inventory model.

Results and conclusions: Carbon neutrality in suburban areas is a fantasy unless there are supportive energy, transportation, and carbon sequestration initiatives at the state, national, and international level. We find that local operational strategies, such as online classes and alternative scheduling, green energy purchase, and parking pricing and carpool programs have merit. Greater results are achieved when operational strategies are combined with cost-effective capital investments such as land use mixing (in this case, on-campus housing). Even so, some of the most favored capital approaches, such as a new green building or building commuter rail transit station facilities, rank near the bottom in cost effectiveness.

Takeaway for practice: Given the urgency of reducing GHG emissions, local planners and activity center managers should evaluate both capital and operating strategies and implement the most cost-effective strategies in new and existing development.

Research support: Support for this research was provided by the President's Office, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.     

基于机组流水法与固定模台法的预制构件生产过程碳排放对比研究

以机组流水法及固定模台法两种预制构件生产工艺过程为研究对象,分别计算预制内墙板构件在生产过程中因材料、电、水、人工消耗产生的碳排放并进行对比分析,结果表明以 2.3m×2.75m×0.2m 尺寸的构件为例,机组流水法与固定模台法的每立方混凝土碳排放量分别是 706.198kg 与 706.378kg 。其中材料消耗产生的碳排放量占 99%以上,采用机组流水法时因电力消耗产生的碳排放占 0.78%,因人工消耗产生的碳排放占 0.02%。采用固定模台法时因电力消耗产生的碳排放占0.74%,因人工消耗产生的碳排放占 0.01%。通过对比分析两种生产方式碳排放组成比例,可以为减少工业化建筑碳排放提供参考。     

Impact of process design on greenhouse gas (GHG) generation by wastewater treatment plants

The overall on-site and off-site greenhouse gas emissions by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) of food processing industry were estimated by using an elaborate mathematical model. Three different types of treatment processes including aerobic, anaerobic and hybrid anaerobic/aerobic processes were examined in this study. The overall on-site emissions were 1952, 1992, and 2435 kg CO₂e/d while the off-site emissions were 1313, 4631, and 5205 kg CO₂e/d for the aerobic, anaerobic and hybrid treatment systems, respectively, when treating a wastewater at 2000 kg BOD/d. The on-site biological processes made the highest contribution to GHG emissions in the aerobic treatment system while the highest emissions in anaerobic and hybrid treatment systems were obtained by off-site GHG emissions, mainly due to on-site material usage. Biogas recovery and reuse as fuel cover the total energy needs of the treatment plants for aeration, heating and electricity for all three types of operations, and considerably reduce GHG emissions by 512, 673, and 988 kg CO₂e/d from a total of 3265, 6625, and 7640 kg CO₂e/d for aerobic, anaerobic, and hybrid treatment systems, respectively. Considering the off-site GHG emissions, aerobic treatment is the least GHG producing type of treatment contrary to what has been reported in the literature.     

Climate change adaptation pathways for Australian residential buildings

Climate change can significantly impact on the total energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of residential buildings. Therefore, climate adaptation should be properly considered in both building design and operation stages to reduce the impact. This paper identified the potential adaptation pathways for existing and new residential buildings, by enhancing their adaptive capacity to accommodate the impact and maintain total energy consumption and GHG emissions no more than the current level in the period of their service life. The feasibility of adaptations was demonstrated by building energy simulations using both representative existing and new housing in eight climate zones varying from cold, temperate to hot humid in Australia. It was found that, in heating dominated climates, a proper level of adaptive capacity of residential buildings could be achieved simply by improving the energy efficiency of building envelop. However, in cooling dominated regions, it could only be achieved by introducing additional measures, such as the use of high energy efficient (EE) appliances and the adoption of renewable energy. The initial costs to implement the adaptations were assessed, suggesting that it is more cost-effective to accommodate future climate change impacts for existing and new houses by improving building envelop energy efficiency in cooling dominated regions, but installing on-site solar PVs instead in heating and cooling balanced regions.     

低碳乡村的碳图谱建构与时空特征分析——以长三角地区为例#br#

低碳减排是我国乡村振兴与可持续发展的重要内容。目前,低碳评估研究多集中于区域、城镇层面,聚焦于乡村层面的研究较为有限。在梳理相关理论的基础上,针对性地提出乡村“碳图谱”的概念,建构以微观宅基地、工厂等为基本单元的碳排放测算模型,并采用图与谱的形式对时空特征进行可视化的表达与解析,以期为低碳乡村的营建规划提供参考与经验。以长三角地区乡村为实证样本,结果表明：乡村碳图谱具有明显的“倾向性”分布、“周期性”变化、“类型化”结构的特征。差异化的产业类型,导致不同乡村的碳图谱时空特征和趋势分异明显,需相对应地提出优化策略机制。     

The carbon footprint of urban green space—A life cycle approach

Cities play an important role in the global carbon cycle. They produce a large proportion of CO₂ emissions, but they also sequester and store carbon in urban forests and green space. However, sequestration by urban green space is difficult to quantify and also involves emissions. The carbon footprint analysis is an established method for systematically quantifying carbon sinks and sources throughout the lifetime of goods and services. We applied this method to an urban green space project in Leipzig, Germany. To the best of our knowledge it is the first application in this field. We simulated carbon sequestration by growing trees and contrasted it with all related carbon sources, from construction and maintenance over the lifetime of 50 years. In addition, we explored alternative design and maintenance scenarios. Total net sequestration was predicted to be between 137 and 162 MgCO₂ ha⁻¹. Park-like design and maintenance is less effective than forest-like design and maintenance. Much uncertainty is linked to tree growth and tree mortality. Increasing annual tree mortality from 0.5 to 4% reduces sequestration by over 70%. In conclusion, urban green space can act as a carbon sink and the design and maintenance have a strong influence on the carbon footprint. The carbon footprint analysis is a valuable tool for estimating the long-term environmental performance of urban green space projects. Compared to emissions from people, the overall potential for carbon mitigation is limited, even in cities such as Leipzig with widely available space for new urban green space.