Alleviate Climate Change Research Articles

Spatial patterns of net greenhouse gas balance and intensity in Chinese orchard system.

Fruit production has been expanding due to the pursuit of healthier lifestyles in China. Determining the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions status of the orchard system could contribute to adopting appropriate measures to alleviate climate change pressure from the growing fruit production. In this study, the net GHG balance and GHG intensity (GHGI) in the Chinese fruit production were estimated at the regional level using a meta-analysis based on databases compiled from relevant publications during 2000-2019, including soil nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) emissions or uptake, upstream carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions related to farm practices, and the change of soil organic carbon (SOC) storage from the life cycle perspective. Results showed that the net GHG balance and GHGI varied among six regions, with ranges of 6.4±0.3 to 10.0±0.6Mg CO2e ha-1yr-1, and 2.2±0.2 to 3.0±0.2kg CO2e kg-1, respectively. Synthetic nitrogen (N) fertilization was the largest source of overall GHG emissions from fruit production throughout China, accounting for 46% and ranging from 43% to 55% in the six fruit production regions. Fertilizer-induced N2O emissions were responsible for 22-31% of the total GHG emissions, and the N2O-N emission factor was identified as 0.7%. Also, power use for irrigation contributed a non-negligible 17% to the emissions on a national level, yet with large regional variations. In addition, fruit production in North, Northeast, Central, and East, and South China have relatively lower GHGIs than in Northwest and Southwest China. The estimated total GHG emissions from the Chinese fruit production were 102 Tg CO2e, with the contribution of SOC change to a decrease by 11% for the year 2018. Our results highlight an urgency to lower fruit production-related carbon emissions by extending optimized N fertilization and irrigation modes in China's orchard system.

Alleviating Climate Change Effect using Environmentally Friendly Process to Preserve Wood against Biodeteriaorating Agent

Alleviating Climate Change Effect using Environmentally Friendly Process to Preserve Wood against Biodeteriaorating Agent

Cyclic olefin copolymer foam: A promising thermal insulation material

In the effort to alleviate climate change and energy consumption issues, thermally insulating polymeric foams can improve energy-management efficiency. To limit the transmission of infrared (IR) radiation through such foams, strong IR-shielding carbon particles are often incorporated to improve thermal insulation performance by blocking IR radiation. However, carbon particles can also dramatically increase solid phase conduction, which counteract efforts to further decrease thermal conductivity. Herein, we report a superior thermal insulation (~28.5 mW·m−1K−1) microcellular foam from ethylene-norbornene (NB) based cyclic olefin copolymers (COCs). Unlike the traditional carbon-filled approach, the incorporation of more NB segments (content from 33, 36, 51 and 58 mol %) in the COC structure greatly improved its ability to block thermal radiation without increasing its solid thermal conductivity. Using the supercritical CO2 and n-butane as physical blowing agents, we fabricated COC foams with tunable morphology. The void fraction of the foams ranged from 50 to 92%, and they demonstrated a high degree of closed cell content (>98%). In COC foams with given cellular structures (e.g. void fraction of 90%, cell size of 100–200 μm and cell density of ~107 cells/cc), their total thermal conductivity decreases from 49.6 to 37.9 mW·m−1K−1 with increasing NB content from 33 to 58%, which is attributed to high-NB COC’s strong ability to attenuate thermal radiation. Subsequently, a highly expanded COC microcellular foam with superior thermal conductivity was successfully developed by tuning both NB content and cellular structure. As a proof of concept, the incorporation of NB segments in COC foams can offer an effective way to shield thermal radiation, opening a new perspective in the development of thermal insulation foams.

Lower methane emissions were associated with higher abundance of ruminal Prevotella in a cohort of Colombian buffalos

BackgroundRuminants burp massive amounts of methane into the atmosphere and significantly contribute to the deposition of greenhouse gases and the consequent global warming. It is therefore urgent to devise strategies to mitigate ruminant’s methane emissions to alleviate climate change. Ruminal methanogenesis is accomplished by a series of methanogen archaea in the phylum Euryarchaeota, which piggyback into carbohydrate fermentation by utilizing residual hydrogen to produce methane. Abundance of methanogens, therefore, is expected to affect methane production. Furthermore, availability of hydrogen produced by cellulolytic bacteria acting upstream of methanogens is a rate-limiting factor for methane production. The aim of our study was to identify microbes associated with the production of methane which would constitute the basis for the design of mitigation strategies.ResultsModerate differences in the abundance of methanogens were observed between groups. In addition, we present three lines of evidence suggesting an apparent higher abundance of a consortium of Prevotella species in animals with lower methane emissions. First, taxonomic classification revealed increased abundance of at least 29 species of Prevotella. Second, metagenome assembly identified increased abundance of Prevotella ruminicola and another species of Prevotella. Third, metabolic profiling of predicted proteins uncovered 25 enzymes with homology to Prevotella proteins more abundant in the low methane emissions group.ConclusionsWe propose that higher abundance of ruminal Prevotella increases the production of propionic acid and, in doing so, reduces the amount of hydrogen available for methanogenesis. However, further experimentation is required to ascertain the role of Prevotella on methane production and its potential to act as a methane production mitigator.

Differentiating biological and chemical factors of top and deep soil carbon sequestration in semi-arid tropical Inceptisol: an outcome of structural equation modeling

ABSTRACT Though soils sequester large amounts of carbon (C), variations in physical and chemical characteristics of top and deep layers necessitate the study of factors governing topsoil and deep soil C sequestration to predict land-use changes to alleviate climate change. Land-use systems involving pasture, trees, trees pasture and fallow were considered. The upper soil (0–15 cm) had ∼12, 34 and 59% higher microbial biomass C than the 15–30, 30–45 and 45–60 cm layers, respectively. Fluorescein diacetate (FDA) and dehydrogenase activities had similar trends. Across the land uses, topsoil layers had ∼17% lower silt + clay (s + c) content than deep layers. Amorphous iron content significantly increased with soil depth. In the top two soil layers, s + c accounted for ∼19–30% of total soil organic carbon (SOC); in the next two layers s + c could store >30% of total SOC. Stepwise regression analysis revealed FDA to be the most significant biological driver for SOC sequestration. Structural equation modeling showed that biological factors controlled C sequestration in topsoil layers, while s + c and amorphous iron were the major factors of C sequestration in deep layers. Current land uses are largely deficient of SOC and have the potential to store an additional22 Mg CO2e per ha.

Vermiculite modification increases carbon retention and stability of rice straw biochar at different carbonization temperatures

Biochar is considered a promising material for sequestering CO2 from the atmosphere, thus helping to alleviate climate change when returned to the soil. Biochar stability is the most decisive factor determining its C sequestration potential. Mineral modification may improve biochar characteristics, but systematic research on the effect of mineral modification on the C retention and stability of biochar and the associated mechanisms is limited. Therefore, in this study, rice straw was used to produce biochar at various temperatures (300, 400, 500, 600, and 700 °C), with vermiculite as a modified mineral material. Several methods including thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy were used to evaluate the effect of vermiculite modification and carbonization temperature on biochar stability. Biochar yield and C retention ratio decreased with increasing temperatures but increased by 13.5–38.8% and 5.2–22.1%, respectively, after vermiculite modification. The ratios of C thermal weight loss, atomic H/C, and C oxidation loss in the biochar were reduced with increasing carbonization temperature, indicating improved thermal, aromatization, and chemical oxidation stability. A trade-off that did not compromise C sequestration potential was optimized at 700 and 600 °C for the unmodified and modified biochar, respectively. Furthermore, the total mineral content of the biochar, particularly Fe, Al, Mg, and Si, were increased by vermiculite modification. FTIR results showed that chemical bonds, such as Si–O–C and Fe–O, were formed or enhanced on the biochar surface after vermiculite modification. This was further certified by the XPS survey spectra. NMR results indicated that biochar stability was enhanced by increasing the aromatization rate during carbonization, that is, by the conversion of C from alkyl and carbonyl C to aromatic C. This study provides a basis for research into and the development of functional biochar and its application in C sequestration.

Nexus of Climate Change and USA Mid-South Rice (<i>Oryza sativa</i> L.) Production

Climate change is manifesting across the USA Mid-South and is impacting agricultural productivity, including the production of rice. This manuscript is a review of pertinent global literature concerning the effect of increasing temperature and carbon dioxide concentrations involving: 1) rice growth and development with an emphasis on spikelet sterility, 2) water availability for irrigation with the specter of aquifer overdraft and emerging water management technologies intended to improve water use efficiency, 3) the soil-plant continuum related to greenhouse gas emission and research avenues supporting agronomic practices that limit these emissions, and 4) region wide assessment of the economic and agronomic indicators to infer changes in the agricultural infrastructure and markets. Based on the global literature review and specific circumstances for USA Mid-South rice production, explicit proposals to mitigate and alleviate climate change are proposed. Key climate change mitigation proposals include: 1) support irrigation technologies that limit water usage and reduce methane emissions, 2) support soil carbon enhancement and newly emerging soil health agronomic practices, 3) achieve a greater usage of remote sensing activities to detect, in real time, field stresses, 4) support rice breeding activities that benefit furrow irrigation and provide heat tolerance, and 5) coordinate a rice region wide consensus to achieve farm gate activities that address climate change.

Simultaneous estimation of battery electric vehicle adoption with endogenous willingness to pay

Abstract To alleviate climate change and health issues caused by the transportation sector, a number of countries and sub-national regions have enacted policies to promote adoption of plug-in vehicles, including policies encouraging the battery electric vehicle (BEV) adoption. Despite the potential benefits of BEVs to both society and consumers, barriers such as high purchase price and limited driving range impede the widespread adoption of BEVs, as evidenced by the small market share of BEVs at present. There is a need to better understand the process in which people make vehicle decisions, and more importantly the value they are willing to pay for purchasing a vehicle. This study employs a bivariate model, wherein a binary probit model of BEV adoption is simultaneously estimated with a log-linear regression of willingness to pay (WTP). The model accounts for the endogeneity of WTP to the equation of BEV adoption and also captures the cross-equation error correlation between the two model components. The estimation results using the 2016 California Vehicle Survey determines the associated influence of factors such as socio-economic characteristics, residential energy sources and prices, and travel behavior, as well as two sets of attitudinal/preferential factors including importance of vehicle attributes and BEV concern factors. The sensitivity analysis of the results reveals that BEV owners are more inclined towards adding another BEV to their households than those with other fuel types and it can be inferred that consumers’ familiarity with the benefits and costs of BEVs may lead to its higher adoption rates.

Is Grassfed Meat and Dairy Better for Human and Environmental Health?

The health of livestock, humans, and environments is tied to plant diversity—and associated phytochemical richness—across landscapes. Health is enhanced when livestock forage on phytochemically rich landscapes, is reduced when livestock forage on simple mixture or monoculture pastures or consume high-grain rations in feedlots, and is greatly reduced for people who eat highly processed diets. Circumstantial evidence supports the hypothesis that phytochemical richness of herbivore diets enhances biochemical richness of meat and dairy, which is linked with human and environmental health. Among many roles they play in health, phytochemicals in herbivore diets protect meat and dairy from protein oxidation and lipid peroxidation that cause low-grade systemic inflammation implicated in heart disease and cancer in humans. Yet, epidemiological and ecological studies critical of red meat consumption do not discriminate among meats from livestock fed high-grain rations as opposed to livestock foraging on landscapes of increasing phytochemical richness. The global shift away from phytochemically and biochemically rich wholesome foods to highly processed diets enabled 2.1 billion people to become overweight or obese and increased the incidence of type II diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Unimpeded, these trends will add to a projected substantial increase in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) from producing food and clearing land by 2050. While agriculture contributes one quarter of GHGE, livestock can play a sizable role in climate mitigation. Of 80 ways to alleviate climate change, regenerative agriculture—managed grazing, silvopasture, tree intercropping, conservation agriculture, and farmland restoration—jointly rank number one as ways to sequester GHG. Mitigating the impacts of people in the Anthropocene can be enabled through diet to improve human and environmental health, but that will require profound changes in society. People will have to learn we are members of nature's communities. What we do to them, we do to ourselves. Only by nurturing them can we nurture ourselves.

Rhenium-Metalated Polypyridine-Based Porous Polycarbazoles for Visible-Light CO2 Photoreduction

Transformation of CO2 into valuable chemicals and especially fuels is deemed as a promising approach to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and to alleviate climate change. Carbazole-based porous polymers bearing rhenium-metalated polypyridine functionalities were constructed via simple oxidative coupling reaction. These porous polymers are employed as heterogeneous supports for immobilization of catalytically active rhenium complexes and furthermore provide high CO2 adsorption capabilities and light absorption abilities, i.e., photosensitizing properties. Consequently, such rhenium-metalated microporous polycarbazole networks show high efficiencies for CO2 photoreduction upon visible-light irradiation, with a CO evolution rate up to 623 μmol g–1 h–1 and selectivity of 97.8%. The microporous solid photocatalyst shows enhanced stability and photocatalytic performance compared to the molecular catalysts during long-term use.

Overpopulation Discourse: Patriarchy, Racism, and the Specter of Ecofascism

Abstract As our current climate crises increase in severity, discussions on solutions have found themselves at the forefront of mainstream media, and talked about by political actors and economic elites. While many of these solutions may seem ethical or even the answer to our ecological problem, we must take a critical look at the root causes in order to understand what actions are necessary. Without this, our discussions fall short, and tend to negatively affect marginalized communities. Family-planning programs aimed at the suppression of certain populations is one example used when discussing how to combat overpopulation in order to alleviate climate change. This superficial, Western, capitalist-driven idea and discussion, laced with sexist and racist undertones, is the discourse we will be analyzing. By employing a critical decolonial and ecofeminist lens, we will critique this discourse, and argue that it’s an all-too-common tool of deflection and scapegoating that white environmentalism employs in order to ignore historic power relations. Further, we will illuminate historical roots and trends around the family-planning movement, such as anti-immigrant sentiment, nationalism, and ecofascism.

Fixing carbon: To alleviate climate change, scientists are exploring ways to harness nature's ability to capture CO2 from the atmosphere.

EMBO Reports (2019) e47580 Global climate change is reality: It is affecting weather patterns and sea levels, and impacting on fauna, flora, and humanity. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre‐industrial levels, anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions must be cut by approximately 45% from 2010 levels by 2030 and reach net zero around 2050. Just saving energy will not be sufficient given the energy‐hungry technologies that keep human civilization running. “The decarbonization of society is a challenging task,” commented Arren Bar‐Even of the Max Planck Institute of Plant Physiology in Potsdam, Germany. “All of the world around us is composed of carbon commodities: plastic, the clothes we wear, everything.” To get to zero emission, humanity must go one step further than developing technologies that do with less energy and begin to capture carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere. > … the most important biological mechanism for fixing carbon dioxide is very inefficient, which is very much down to one enzyme… There are various technologies to capture carbon dioxide and store it in underground geological formations or reduce it to one‐carbon compounds, such as methane. Yet, storing is only a temporary solution and methane is of limited use. Scientists are therefore trying to learn from biology. In fact, nature has invented carbon fixation with photosynthesis more than a billion years ago and has since expanded and refined it. Moreover, photosynthesis can convert carbon dioxide into complex molecules with long carbon backbones. “Organisms have an unbelievable biosynthetic potential that is unmatched by chemical processes. Biology is very good at selectively building complex carbon molecules, and they can do so from atmospheric carbon dioxide” said Tobias Erb of the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Marburg, Germany. Researchers now aim to harness biology's synthetic ability …

Accuracy of Genomic Prediction for Foliar Terpene Traits in Eucalyptus polybractea.

Unlike agricultural crops, most forest species have not had millennia of improvement through phenotypic selection, but can contribute energy and material resources and possibly help alleviate climate change. Yield gains similar to those achieved in agricultural crops over millennia could be made in forestry species with the use of genomic methods in a much shorter time frame. Here we compare various methods of genomic prediction for eight traits related to foliar terpene yield in Eucalyptus polybractea, a tree grown predominantly for the production of Eucalyptus oil. The genomic markers used in this study are derived from shallow whole genome sequencing of a population of 480 trees. We compare the traditional pedigree-based additive best linear unbiased predictors (ABLUP), genomic BLUP (GBLUP), BayesB genomic prediction model, and a form of GBLUP based on weighting markers according to their influence on traits (BLUP|GA). Predictive ability is assessed under varying marker densities of 10,000, 100,000 and 500,000 SNPs. Our results show that BayesB and BLUP|GA perform best across the eight traits. Predictive ability was higher for individual terpene traits, such as foliar α-pinene and 1,8-cineole concentration (0.59 and 0.73, respectively), than aggregate traits such as total foliar oil concentration (0.38). This is likely a function of the trait architecture and markers used. BLUP|GA was the best model for the two biomass related traits, height and 1 year change in height (0.25 and 0.19, respectively). Predictive ability increased with marker density for most traits, but with diminishing returns. The results of this study are a solid foundation for yield improvement of essential oil producing eucalypts. New markets such as biopolymers and terpene-derived biofuels could benefit from rapid yield increases in undomesticated oil-producing species.

Syngas production via plasma photocatalytic reforming of methane with carbon dioxide

Anthropogenic emission of CH4 and CO2 contributes for most of global warming. Hence, simultaneous conversion of CH4 and CO2 into syngas (dry reforming of methane) can be a promising way to alleviate climate change. In this work, we developed a series of perovskite-type photocatalysts, based on LaFeO3 with various calcination temperatures to combine with a spark discharge reactor to form a hybrid plasma photocatalysis reactor. The hybrid reactor is applied for dry reforming of methane to investigate the syngas generation rate and to reveal possible interactions between plasma and photocatalyst. Results show that LFO600-packed bed has the best CH4 and CO2 conversions and syngas generation efficiency of 53.6%, 40.0% and 18.4 mol/kWh, respectively. The enhancement of syngas generation rate can be attributed to synergies between LFO and plasma. Furthermore, changing calcination temperature of photocatalyst also leads to variable characteristics of photocatalyst and hence plasma photocatalysis performance for syngas production.

Approach to the Construction of Green Port in Tianjin Port

Transportation is one of the main sources of carbon emission, and it is also an important area for reducing greenhouse gas emission and alleviating climate change. Tianjin port is the largest artificial port in China, and it is also an important port in China. The construction of green port can effectively control the energy consumption and pollutant discharge of the port. From five aspects of improving management ways, strengthening propaganda and training, clean energy utilization, technological transformation and environmental protection, this paper puts forward relevant measures for Tianjin port to build green ports, so as to effectively guide Tianjin port to carry out the construction of green ports.

Will technology advances alleviate climate change? Dual effects of technology change on aggregate carbon dioxide emissions

The relationship between technology change and carbon dioxide emissions is complex. Existing research has emphasized technology progress in reducing carbon emission intensity but has ignored the impact of technology progress on economic growth, which leads to changes in carbon dioxide emissions. We argue that technology has relatively independent economic and environmental attributes. To provide evidence for this, we developed a method to distinguish the scale effect of technology change and its influence on economic scale from the intensity effect of technology change and its influence on carbon emission intensity. We applied this method to study the impact of technology change on carbon dioxide emissions in 95 countries between 1996 and 2007. We found that technology change indeed reduced aggregate carbon dioxide emissions, but the scale and intensity effects of technology change separately expressed positive and negative values. As a consequence, previous studies that only consider the intensity effect overestimate the impact of technology change on carbon dioxide emissions. Our findings yield important considerations for carbon dioxide emissions control in policy making.

The role of attitudinal motivations and collective efficacy on Chinese consumers’ intentions to engage in personal behaviors to mitigate climate change

ABSTRACTThe Chinese government has recently pledged to reduce its CO2 emissions by 2030. Industrial use of energy, however, is just one source of greenhouse gas emissions. Chinese consumers’ more affluent lifestyles also lead to increased consumption of energy, which can result in greenhouse gas emissions. Based on a survey of 516 Chinese consumers, the present investigation examined whether their attitudinal motivations and collective efficacy are related to their intentions to engage in personal actions that may help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Results show that the utilitarian motivation related to the effectiveness of personal actions to alleviate climate change, motivation to express their moral values, self-esteem maintenance motivation, and collective efficacy predicted their attitudes toward these personal actions. Collective efficacy was in turn predicted by future orientation, norms, and the utilitarian motivation. Finally, attitudes and collective efficacy were two major considerations that predicted behavioral intentions. Implications for programs to promote low-carbon actions and lifestyles among Chinese consumers are discussed.

Optimum soil frost depth to alleviate climate change effects in cold region agriculture

On-farm soil frost control has been used for the management of volunteer potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.), a serious weed problem caused by climate change, in northern Japan. Deep soil frost penetration is necessary for the effective eradication of unharvested small potato tubers; however, this process can delay soil thaw and increase soil wetting in spring, thereby delaying agricultural activity initiation and increasing nitrous oxide emissions from soil. Conversely, shallow soil frost development helps over-wintering of unharvested potato tubers and nitrate leaching from surface soil owing to the periodic infiltration of snowmelt water. In this study, we synthesised on-farm snow cover manipulation experiments to determine the optimum soil frost depth that can eradicate unharvested potato tubers without affecting agricultural activity initiation while minimising N pollution from agricultural soil. The optimum soil frost depth was estimated to be 0.28–0.33 m on the basis of the annual maximum soil frost depth. Soil frost control is a promising practice to alleviate climate change effects on agriculture in cold regions, which was initiated by local farmers and further promoted by national and local research institutes.

Exergetic Aspects of Hydrogen Energy Systems—The Case Study of a Fuel Cell Bus

Electrifying transportation is a promising approach to alleviate climate change issues arising from increased emissions. This study examines a system for the production of hydrogen using renewable energy sources as well as its use in buses. The electricity requirements for the production of hydrogen through the electrolysis of water, are covered by renewable energy sources. Fuel cells are being used to utilize hydrogen to power the bus. Exergy analysis for the system is carried out. Based on a steady-state model of the processes, exergy efficiencies are calculated for all subsystems. The subsystems with the highest proportion of irreversibility are identified and compared. It is shown that PV panel has exergetic efficiency of 12.74%, wind turbine of 45%, electrolysis of 67%, and fuel cells of 40%.

Analysis of Climate Change on Agricultural Commodity Dependent Developing Countries (CDDCS): Case of Sub Saharan African Countries

Climate change is one of the contemporaneous issues of the 21st century. Of importance is how it is affecting aspects such as jobs, resource allocation, conflict, poverty in economies. Sub Saharan Africa is a special subset of the broader global economy, with countries which are still largely subsisting on nature dependent economic activities, agriculture in particular. This makes the region susceptible to climate change, which threatens to throttle and dislocate these weak economies. To add to this dilemma, are the problems which are already existing in these economies.The role of commodity dependency requires special mention also in this ever changing global economy. Developing countries find it practically hard to pluck into the increasingly integrating Global Value Chain (GVC) owing to dependency on primary commodities. This paper seeks to analyse the impact of climate change in the context of agriculture dependent countries in Sub Saharan Africa. Further, it seeks to look into some of the ways these countries can alleviate climate change induced challenges.