Greenhouse Gas Emissions Quantification and Reduction Efforts in a Rural Municipality

Better information on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and mitigation potential in the agricultural sector is necessary to manage these emissions and identify responses that are consistent with the food security and economic development priorities of countries. Critical activity data (what crops or livestock are managed in what way) are poor or lacking for many agricultural systems, especially in developing countries. In addition, the currently available methods for quantifying emissions and mitigation are often too expensive or complex or not sufficiently user friendly for widespread use.The purpose of this focus issue is to capture the state of the art in quantifying greenhouse gases from agricultural systems, with the goal of better understanding our current capabilities and near-term potential for improvement, with particular attention to quantification issues relevant to smallholders in developing countries. This work is timely in light of international discussions and negotiations around how agriculture should be included in efforts to reduce and adapt to climate change impacts, and considering that significant climate financing to developing countries in post-2012 agreements may be linked to their increased ability to identify and report GHG emissions (Murphy et al 2010, CCAFS 2011, FAO 2011).

This study estimates the reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions resulting from 840 telemedicine consultations completed in a 6-month time period. Our model considers GHG emissions for both vehicle and videoconferencing unit energy use. Cost avoidance factors are also discussed. Travel distances in kilometers were calculated for each appointment using postal code data and Google Maps™ Web-based map calculator tools. Including return travel, an estimated 757,234 km were avoided, resulting in a GHG emissions savings of 185,159 kg (185 metric tons) of carbon dioxide equivalents in vehicle emissions. Approximately 360,444 g of other air pollutant emissions was also avoided. The GHG emissions produced by energy consumption for videoconference units were estimated to be 42 kg of carbon dioxide equivalents emitted for this sample. The overall GHG emissions associated with videoconferencing unit energy is minor when compared with those avoided from vehicle use. In addition to improved patient-centered care and cost savings, environmental benefits provide additional incentives for the adoption of telemedicine services.

Major US electric utility climate pledges have the potential to collectively reduce power sector emissions by one-third

BackgroundSustainable purchasing can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at healthcare facilities (HCF). A previous study found that converting from disposable to reusable sharps containers (DSC, RSC) reduced sharps waste stream GHG by 84% but found transport distances impacted significantly on GHG outcomes and recommended further studies where transport distances are large. This case-study examines the impact on GHG of nation-wide transport distances when a large US health system converted from DSC to RSC.MethodsThe study’s scope was to examine life cycle GHG emissions during 12 months of facility-wide use of DSC and RSC at Loma Linda University Health (LLUH). The facility is an 1100-bed US, 5-hospital system where: the source of polymer was distant from the RSC manufacturing plant; both manufacturing plants were over 3,000 km from the HCF; and the RSC processing plant was considerably further from the HCF than was the DSC disposal plant. Using a “cradle to grave” life cycle GHG tool we calculated the annual GHG emissions of CO2, CH4 and N2O expressed in metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (MTCO2eq) for each container system. Primary energy input data was used wherever possible and region-specific energy-impact conversions were used to calculate GHG of each unit process over a 12-month period. The scope included Manufacture, Transport, Washing, and Treatment & disposal. GHG emissions from all unit process within these four life cycle stages were summed to estimate each container-system’s carbon footprint. Emission totals were workload-normalized and analysed using CHI2test with P ≤ 0.05 and rate ratios at 95% CL.ResultsConverting to RSC, LLUH reduced its annual GHG by 162.4 MTCO2eq (−65.3%; p < 0.001; RR 2.27–3.71), and annually eliminated 50.2 tonnes of plastic DSC and 8.1 tonnes of cardboard from the sharps waste stream. Of the plastic eliminated, 31.8 tonnes were diverted from landfill and 18.4 from incineration.DiscussionUnlike GHG reduction strategies dependent on changes in staff behavior (waste segregation, recycling, turning off lights, car-pooling, etc), purchasing strategies can enable immediate, sustainable and institution-wide GHG reductions to be achieved. This study confirmed that large transport distances between polymer manufacturer, container manufacturer, user and processing facilities, can significantly impact the carbon footprint of sharps containment systems. However, even with large transport distances, we found that a large university health system significantly reduced the carbon footprint of their sharps waste stream by converting from DSC to RSC.

The production of secondary materials from waste materials requires, in most cases, significantly lower energy amounts than the primary material production of raw materials. Along with lower energy demand, the greenhouse gas emissions produced are also lower. The duty of a modern waste management system should therefore be to collect and sort the waste materials in a way that the highest amounts of single material fractions with the highest qualities can be generated. In this contribution, the greenhouse gas balances of the theoretical treatment of the household waste, if collected as mixed waste in sanitary landfills, in waste incineration plants, or in mechanical-biological treatment plants, are compared to the existing separate waste collection and treatment in Germany in 2014. The results show that the treatment of the mixed collected household waste in sanitary landfills would lead to a significant release of greenhouse gases. The treatment in MBTs with the recovery of valuables and the further disposal of the biologically stabilized fraction on landfills, as well as the treatment of the high calorific fraction (also called refuse derived fuel – RDF) in RDF plants, coal-fired power plants, or cement kilns, would lead to small amounts of avoided greenhouse gas emissions. The thermal treatment in waste incineration plants would lead to moderate amounts of avoided greenhouse gases. Only with the actually practiced separate collection and treatment of household waste were significant amounts of greenhouse gas emissions avoided. In total, this is approximately 5.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents for approximately 45.5 million tons of separate collected and treated household waste in Germany in 2014.

The life cycle based greenhouse gas (GHG) balances of Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAME also called "Biodiesel") from various resources have been set in the Renewable Energy Directive (RED). Due to technology and scientific progress there are various options to improve the GHG balances of FAME. In this Supporting Action 10 most interesting options were assessed: 1) "Biomethanol": Substitution of fossil methanol with biomethanol; 2) "Bioethanol": Substitution of fossil methanol with bioethanol; 3) "CHP residues": Use of residues and co-products in an CHP plant; 4) "New plant species": Examination of new plants for vegetable oils, that could increase the biomass weight without any detrimental effect on the oil seed; 5) "Bioplastics and biochemicals": Production of bioplastics and biochemicals from process residues; 6) "Advanced agriculture": Advanced agricultural practices in terms of N2O emissions and soil carbon accumulation; 7) "Organic residues": Use of organic versus mineral fertilizer for feedstock cultivation; 8) "FAME as fuel": Use of FAME in machinery for cultivation, transportation and distribution; 9) "Retrofitting multi feedstock": Retrofitting of single feedstock plants for blending fatty residues; and 10) "Green electricity": Use of renewable electricity produced in a PV plant on site. The assessment approach started with the GHG standard values of the RED and the corresponding background data documented in BioGrace. For the most relevant FAME production possibilities in Europe, characterized by the feedstock (rapeseed, sunflower, palm oil, soybean, used cooking oil, animal fat) and FAME production capacity (50 - 200 kt/a), the technical and economic data of "Best Available Technology in 2015" (BAT) were used as starting point to assess the improvement options. Based on the calculation of GHG emissions (g CO2-eq/MJ) and production cost (€/tFAME) an overall assessment (incl SWOT-Analyses and Stakeholder involvement) of the options was made and summarized in "Fact Sheets". A significant GHG reduction compared to the RED values in processing is possible, if best available technology (BAT) is applied. The GHG emissions of cultivation compared to RED are higher due to improved data on the correlation between fertilizer input and yields. The assessed GHG improvements options show that the potential to reduce emissions is relatively large in agriculture cultivation, but a relatively low in processing. The production cost analysis shows that revenues from co-produced animal feed and oil yield per hectare have a strong influence on total production costs, e.g. mainly animal feed from soybeans. The total FAME production cost of BAT are 280 – 1,000 €/tFAME, including revenues from co-products. Cost ranges arise due to different feedstock and capacities. The greenhouse gas analysis of the improvement options results in a GHG reduction potential of 0 - 37 g CO2-eq/MJ compared to BAT. The greenhouse gas mitigation costs of improvement options range between -260 and +1,000 €/t CO2-eq. Options with negative greenhouse gas mitigation costs generate economic benefits compared to the base case. Summing up the assessment one can conclude that the future FAME production has several options to further improve its GHG balance thus contributing substantially to a more sustainable transportation sector.

The Republic of Korea submitted its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat in December 2021. The updated NDC target is to reduce total national greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40% from the 2018 level, which is 727.6 Mt CO2eq, by 2030. According to the updated NDC, local governments are also required to revise their GHG reduction plans. In addition, local governments should self-inspect the progress and major achievements of the GHG reduction plan every year in accordance with the evaluation guideline of the Ministry of Environment. Of 6 metropolitan cities, Gyeonggi Province shows the highest GHG emissions in the country, which accounts for about 17% of the total national GHG emissions in 2021. Ironically, Goyang City, a basic local government of Gyeonggi Province, was selected as one of the seven best local governments for carbon neutrality in 2021. The City has set a reduction target of 32.8% below BAU by 2030 and prepared a plan to implement reduction targets by sector. Over the last decade, building and transportation sectors have been the major sources of GHG emissions in Goyang City, accounting for approx. 70% of the city&amp;#8217;s total GHG emissions. The city promotes zero-energy building (ZEB) for newly constructed buildings and encourages green remodeling for existing buildings in order to reduce GHG emissions in the building sector. It is essential to introduce renewable energy such as solar, geothermal, hydrothermal, etc. for ZEB and green remodeling. In this study, therefore, the potential for solar power generation, which is most easily applicable to the building sector, and GHG reduction were calculated for residential buildings in Goyang City. To calculate the available area for solar power on the roof of residential buildings, spatial data was constructed using high-resolution aerial photographs and the outline of the building roof was extracted through AI training data.&amp;#160;AcknowledgementsThis research was carried out as a part of KICT Research Program (Data-Centric Checkup Technique of Building Energy Performance) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT.

Taking Stock of Strategies on Climate Change and the Way Forward: A Strategic Climate Change Framework for Australia

The rise of online flea markets in Japan has expanded access to secondhand products. Despite this expansion and the increasing recognition of the need for sustainable consumption, there remains a notable constraint on consumer acceptance of pre-owned items. Thus, this study emphasizes the utility of secondhand product usage in a context where consumer acceptance of pre-owned items is limited despite the recognized sustainability necessity. Additionally, it aims to investigate secondhand clothing-utilization patterns among users, estimate the environmental potential reduction, and assess their contribution to sustainable consumption. Conducted on users of the Japanese online flea market platform, Mercari (sellers: n = 13,325, buyers: n = 9985), the study quantified the potential reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by reusing secondhand clothing. Utilizing a survey, the key findings revealed distinct reuse characteristics for different items, confirming extended product lifespan even for those in poor condition. Moreover, secondhand products were used more frequently than new ones, and buyers exhibited less concern about potential damage. The displacement rate of secondhand for new clothing did not significantly decrease with worsening product condition. The study estimated a potential 9.6 thousand tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (ton-CO2eq) reduction under the assumption of 10 million secondhand clothing items replacing new ones. This study proposes the feasibility of utilizing secondhand items and their potential contribution to environmental conservation in consumption. Further, it establishes the theoretical foundation necessary to articulate the environmental significance of secondhand products. Simultaneously, it provides valuable insights into the broader implications of sustainable consumption practices.

Globally, agriculture is directly responsible for 14% of annual greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions and induces an additional 17% through land use change, mostlyin developing countries (Vermeulen et al 2012). Agricultural intensification andexpansion in these regions is expected to catalyze the most significant relativeincreases in agricultural GHG emissions over the next decade (Smith et al 2008,Tilman et al 2011). Farms in the developing countries of sub-Saharan Africa andAsia are predominately managed by smallholders, with 80% of land holdingssmaller than ten hectares (FAO 2012). One can therefore posit that smallholderfarming significantly impacts the GHG balance of these regions today and willcontinue to do so in the near future.However, our understanding of the effect smallholder farming has on theEarth’s climate system is remarkably limited. Data quantifying existing andreduced GHG emissions and removals of smallholder production systems areavailable for only a handful of crops, livestock, and agroecosystems (Herrero et al2008, Verchot et al 2008, Palm et al 2010). For example, fewer than fifteenstudies of nitrous oxide emissions from soils have taken place in sub-SaharanAfrica, leaving the rate of emissions virtually undocumented. Due to a scarcity ofdata on GHG sources and sinks, most developing countries currently quantifyagricultural emissions and reductions using IPCC Tier 1 emissions factors.However, current Tier 1 emissions factors are either calibrated to data primarilyderived from developed countries, where agricultural production conditions aredissimilar to that in which the majority of smallholders operate, or from data thatare sparse or of mixed quality in developing countries (IPCC 2006). For the mostpart, there are insufficient emissions data characterizing smallholder agricultureto evaluate the level of accuracy or inaccuracy of current emissions estimates.Consequentially, there is no reliable information on the agricultural GHG budgetsfor developing economies. This dearth of information constrains the capacity totransition to low-carbon agricultural development, opportunities for smallholdersto capitalize on carbon markets, and the negotiating position of developingcountries in global climate policy discourse.Concerns over the poor state of information, in terms of data availability andrepresentation, have fueled appeals for new approaches to quantifying GHGemissions and removals from smallholder agriculture, for both existing conditionsand mitigation interventions (Berry and Ryan 2013, Olander et al 2013).Considering the dependence of quantification approaches on data and the currentdata deficit for smallholder systems, it is clear that in situ measurements must bea core part of initial and future strategies to improve GHG inventories and

Background and objective: Carbon neutrality must be achieved across societal sectors through carbon neutral policies. Therefore, local governments, which realize the actual greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction, must develop GHG reduction strategies. This study aims to present information on the GHG reduction of the building sector (BS) at the local government level, for the carbon neutrality by 2050 (CN).Methods: The gross floor area (GFA) of all buildings and the total floor area of household (HBs), business (BBs), and public buildings (PBs) and by 2050 were predicted using building and demographic information from Jeollanam-do. Buildings were classified as over or under 10 years old. GHG emissions projection by 2050 were combined the GFA prediction results with public information on building energy consumption (BEC). After adjusting the nationwide CN goal for the BS in Jeollanam-do, the pathways for two scenarios were to estimate GHG reduction.Results: HBs showed the steepest increase in GFA, while BBs and PBs showed a very modest increase. About 30% of HBs and BBs were under 10 years and about 70% were over 10 years. The HB's GHG emissions increased remarkably, reflecting the GFA results, while the emissions of BBs and PBs didn't raised much. GHG reduction targets by 2030 were calculated as 1.4, 0.7, and 0.35 million TOE for HBs, BBs, and PBs, respectively. Reduction Scenario 1 shows a straight-line path with a negative slope from 2023. Reduction Scenario 2 shows an increase in emissions after 2023, which begins to decrease from 2028, falling with a curved steep slope until 2035, followed by a very modest decline until 2050.Conclusion: This study calculated GHG emissions from the BS by 2050 using the latest information on BEC and GHG calculation guidelines. The method in this study helps establish regional/local GHG reduction targets, setting scenarios, and estimating GHG reduction.

The dairy Carbon Offset Scenario Tool (COST) was developed to explore the influence of various abatement strategies on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for Australian dairy farms. COST is a static spreadsheet-based tool that uses Australian GHG inventory methodologies, algorithms and emission factors to estimate carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions of a dairy farm system. One of the key differences between COST and other inventory-based dairy GHG emissions calculators is the ability to explore the effect of reducing total farm emissions on farm income, assuming the strategy was compliant with Kyoto rules for carbon offsets. COST provides ten abatement strategies across the four broad theme areas of diet manipulation, herd and breeding management, feedbase management and waste management. Each abatement strategy contains four sections; two sections for data entry (baseline farm data specific to the strategy explored and strategy-specific variables) and two sections for results (milk production results and GHG/economic-related results). Key sensitive variables for each strategy, identified from prior research, and prices for milk production and carbon offsets are adjusted through up/down buttons, which allows users to quickly explore the impact of these variables on farm emissions and profitability. For example, if the cost to implement an abatement strategy is doubled, what carbon offset income would be required to negate this additional cost? Results are presented as changes in carbon offset income, strategy implementation cost, additional milk production income and net farm income on a per annum and on a per GHG emissions intensity of milk production basis. COST currently contains a comprehensive range of strategies for GHG abatement, although some strategies are still in development. As new technologies or farm management practices leading to a reduction in GHG emission become available, these too will be incorporated into COST. To date, two dairy-specific abatement methodologies have been legislated as part of Australia’s commitment to reducing on-farm GHG emissions through it’s the carbon offset scheme, the Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) and are incorporated into COST. These are the ‘Destruction of methane generated from dairy manure in covered anaerobic ponds’ and the ‘Methodology for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in milking cows through feeding dietary additives’. As an example, we explored the mitigation option Replace supplements with a source of dietary fats (reflecting the second above-mentioned CFI legislated abatement strategy) as feeding a diet higher in dietary fats has been shown to reduce enteric methane emissions per unit of feed intake. A 400 milking herd was fed a baseline diet of 2.6% dietary fat. By replacing grain with hominy meal, at a rate of 5.0 kg dry matter/ cow per day for 90 days during the 3 summer months, the summer diet fat concentration was increased to 6.4%. Enteric methane emissions were reduced by 40 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (t CO 2 e) per annum for the farm. Waste methane and nitrous oxide emissions were also reduced by 0.5 and 1.6 t CO 2 e/annum, respectively. However, as reductions from these two sources of GHG emissions do not qualify for payment with this CFI methodology, their reduction could not be included as an offset income. At a carbon price of $20/ t CO 2 e, the reduction in enteric methane emissions was valued at $800/farm. The implementation cost of replacing grain with hominy was valued at $18,000/farm due to the hominy meal costing an additional $100/t dry matter compared to the grain. However, the additional milk production achieved due to the higher energy concentration of the diet resulted in an additional 70,200 litres and based on a summer milk price of $0.38/ litre, this equated to an additional income from milk valued at $26,676/farm. The overall result was a net increase in farm profit of $9,476/farm when paid on a reduction in total GHG emissions. COST can quickly allow users to ascertain the level of GHG emission reduction possible with various mitigation options and explore the sensitivity of key variables on GHG emissions and farm profitability.

Drivers of the national and regional crop production-derived greenhouse gas emissions in China

China is a large agricultural country, where agricultural activities and rural life cause a large amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the process of crop growth, production, and processing, a large number of crop straws and agricultural wasted products are produced, which become one of the important sources of biomass resources. However, few detailed studies focused on the potential of China's agricultural biomass energy conversion and carbon emission reduction, and fewer studies proposed GHG emission reduction strategies from the perspective of making full use of China's agricultural waste resources. In this study, the quantity calculation index of agricultural biomass energy was given, and the GHG emission reduction potential calculation index of agricultural biomass energy was constructed, with which the amount of GHG emissions caused by agricultural waste use in China was measured and the potential of GHG emission reduction caused by agricultural waste use would be easily speculated. Based on the statistical data of China, the quantity and GHG emission reduction potential of agricultural biomass resources in China in the recent 10 years (2009∼2018) were clarified. According to the research, the amount of agricultural waste equivalent to standard coal in China from 2009 to 2018 reached 280,0711 million tons. If all these resources were used to replace coal, a total of 4,474,483 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions could be saved. Assuming that these wastes are anaerobic, carbonized, or fully burned as fuel, CH4 emissions could be reduced by up to 12.024 million tons and N2O emissions by up to 185,000 tons. It can be seen that the effective utilization of agricultural biomass resources can replace coal, reduce backwardness such as land burning, and then reduce CO2, CH4, N2O, and other greenhouse gas emissions, and promote the realization of carbon peak and carbon neutrality.

Switzerland’s domestic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions stood relatively low at 5.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents per capita in 2019. However, by adding all consumption-based emissions caused on both Swiss territory and abroad, including imported goods and international air travel, Switzerland’s GHG footprint amounted to fourteen tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents per capita and year. This rate is two-and-a-half times higher than the global average of six tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents. Although it was the first country to communicate its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement—entering into force for Switzerland on 5 November 2017 and pledging to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels—Switzerland likely missed its reduction goals pledged for 2020 under the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Doha Amendment.