Environmental Trade-offs Research Articles

Assessing the hidden impacts of hypothetical eruption events at Mount Etna

We estimate how the value and the spatial distribution of carbon storage, water yield and wild pollination services are expected to change with potential expansion of lava flow inundation at Mount Etna volcano (Sicily, Italy). We rely on a hazard map lava by flow inundation to simulate a set of three future land use/land cover (LU/LC) scenarios related to different hazard levels with a specific probability of occurrence. Our assessment used the Integrated Valuation of Environmental Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) tool and GIS spatial analysis and indicates that changes in the delivery of all three ecosystem services are biophysically and economically sizeable. The variation between scenarios demonstrates that the carbon storage and wild pollination services will decrease because of the loss of woods and natural habitats. In contrast, the water yield capacity will increase for the creation of new naked land surfaces characterised by high permeability values. In the worst-case scenario, we estimate a loss of 17% and 10% for carbon storage and wild pollination services respectively, and an increase of approximately 10% for water yield. • We assess how potential lava flow could impact carbon storage, water yield and wild pollination services at Mount Etna. • Variation between scenarios shows that carbon storage and wild pollination decrease, and water yield capacity increase. • In the worst-case, we find a loss of 17% for carbon storage and 10% for wild pollination and a gain of 10% for water yield.

Environmental, exergetic and economic tradeoffs of catalytic- and fast pyrolysis-to-renewable diesel

This paper compares the cost and life cycle environmental performance of renewable diesel produced from upgraded catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP) and fast pyrolysis (FP) bio-oils produced from forest residues. Integrating zeolite catalyst into the pyrolysis reactor in CFP requires upgrading in one catalytic hydrocracking step, whereas FP requires upgrading by multiple catalytic hydrotreating and hydrocracking steps, raising capital costs. The FP system considers hydrogen production from co-produced biochar, further raising capital costs but eliminating the large external hydrogen need. Despite lower capital costs, due to higher operating costs from catalyst replacement and purchased hydrogen, the estimated minimum selling price of CFP fuel ($2/L) is greater than FP fuel ($1.68/L). Utilities, hydrogen and catalyst contributions to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, exergy and annual cost are sizeable for CFP. However, GHG emissions for CFP (−72 to 32 g CO2e/MJ) are low and negative when considering credits for biochar due to a high biochar to fuel product ratio (2:1). In contrast, FP with catalytic upgrading maintains a high biofuel yield and low GHG emissions (8–13 g CO2e/MJ) that meet energy policy objectives with more favorable economics compared to CFP. Neither fuel is cost competitive with petroleum-diesel even with renewable fuel credits.

Assessing emission and power tradeoffs of biodiesel and n-Butanol in diesel blends for fuel sustainability

The use of renewable biodiesel and additives diversifies transportation fuel supply. Combustion tests on neat ultra-low sulfur No.2 diesel (D100) and its blends with biodiesel and the n-butanol additive were conducted to investigate environmental impacts and tradeoffs in engine emission and power output. The testing results show measurable changes in power output and engine emission, particularly in diesel particulate matter (DPM) size distribution and black carbon compositions. The binary diesel-biodiesel blend D80B20 (80% D100 and 20%B100 by volume) offers reduced PM and black carbon emission, but higher NOx in engine exhaust. Comparatively the tertiary diesel-biodiesel-butanol blend B15Bu5 (80% D100, 15% B100, and 5% Bu100 by volume) shows superior environmental tradeoff in the black carbon and NOx emission than D80B20. Both fuel blends suffer a 3.0–5.6% increase in brake-specific fuel consumption. At higher combustion temperature, the butanol-oxygenated diesel fuel produces DPMs of smaller size, higher number concentrations, greater OC fractions, and more amorphous black carbon particles. The peak DPM aerodynamic size dpmax for D80B20 and B15Bu5 blends is 0.20–0.32 μm, smaller than >0.40 μm dpmax for D100 and the 0.30 μm cut-off size of regular DPM filters. For an internal combustion engine capable of accommodating biodiesel and water fraction in the fuel mixture, the B15Bu5 blend offers a viable fuel alternative according to the comparative testing results. The use of biodiesel and butanol additive in petroleum diesel can decrease the DPM emission, while the undesired NOx formation in tradeoff can be managed through optimizing the tertiary composition of petroleum diesel, biodiesel, and fuel additives.

Sustainable Development and Ecological Modernization: Boundary Discourses between “Strong” and “Weak” Approaches

The concepts of “sustainable development” and “ecological modernization” are todays’ main discourses of action on the global environmental crisis. However, the quest of priorities interpretation within concepts is raised: there is a path dependence of the hegemonic worldview of techno-economic progress that was supposed to be overcome. The objective of this text is to analyse how this dependence influenced the evolution of such concepts and their operational proposals. Methodologically, the research is based on a literature review on discourses of these concepts. A typology of “strong” and “weak” discourses highlights the possibilities of “business as usual” in its operational interpretation as well as the ways to overcome it. The results show that the confrontation between them lead to a conceptual evolution of sustainable development and ecological modernization that merges into a common agenda: the governance of ambivalence between economic and social progress and environmental frontiers. The text concludes by proposing the existence of a discursive game between “survival” and “tranquillity”. This highlights an essential tension between environmental mitigation and institutional change that has accompanied the political agenda in the past 50 years. The resulting reflexive governance as a choice implies a broad participation in decision-making processes so that environmental trade-offs are collectively discussed, and responsibilities are shared. Notwithstanding, the article claims that this essential tension further implies questioning if governance may not also be a new discourse of appeasement and political unaccountability.

Life Cycle Assessment of Italian Electricity Scenarios to 2030

The study presents a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Italian electricity scenarios, devised in the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (INECP). A fully representative LCA of the national electricity system was carried out, taking into consideration a great number of different power plant typologies for current (2016 and 2017) and future (2030) electricity mixes. The study confirms that LCA can be a powerful tool for supporting energy planning and strategies assessment. Indeed the results put in evidence not only the improvement of the environmental profile from the current to the future mix (the impacts decrease from 2016 to 2030 due to the transition towards renewables, mainly wind and photovoltaic), but also underline the difference between two scenarios at 2030 (being the scenario that includes the strategic objectives of the INECP to 2030 the one showing best environmental profile), providing an evaluation of the effect of different energy policies. For example, in the INECP scenario CO2 eq/kWh is 46% lower than current scenario and 37% lower than business as usual scenario for 2030. Moreover, considering different impact categories allowed to identify potential environmental trade-offs. The results suggest also the need of future insight on data related to photovoltaic technologies and materials and their future development.

Environmental Tradeoffs between Nutrient Recycling and Greenhouse Gases Emissions in an Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture System.

The unlimited nitrogen (N) availability that has characterized crop production in the last few decades is accompanied by environmental burdens, including the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with fertilizer production, post-application nitrate (NO3–) pollution of water bodies, and emissions of reactive gaseous N forms into the atmosphere. Here, we quantified the environmental tradeoffs of replacing mineral N fertilizer with NO3– and ammonium (NH4+) originating from effluent water of aquaculture in a cucumber (Cucumis sativus) cultivation system. While the yield, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and NO3– leaching were similar between the cucumbers fertilized and irrigated (fertigated) by aquaculture effluent water containing 100 mg of NO3–-N L–1 (AN), by aquaculture effluent water supplemented with NH4+ (AN+), or by tap water with NO3– and NH4+ added (FN+), there were significant differences in the nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions between the systems. The N2O emissions peaked after each irrigation event followed by an exponential decline. The cumulative N2O emissions were between 60 and 600 g N2O-N ha–1, smaller than predicted based on a fertilizer application rate of 600 kg N ha–1 and were in the order AN+ ≫ FN+ > AN.

Land-use change in Changli County, China: Predicting its spatio-temporal evolution in habitat quality

Rapid urbanisation and expansion of residential, industrial, and traffic areas have greatly changed regional land-use patterns and have directly affected habitat quality and biodiversity. Assessing and predicting the spatio-temporal evolution and future development trends of habitat quality under the influence of land-use change can provide a scientific basis for regional natural environment conservation and land-use planning. To calculate land-use patterns across space and time, we used different data sources including land-use change surveys, meteorology, statistical yearbooks, and digital elevation model data in Changli County. We modelled past, present and future land-use change with two different models (Cellular automata-Markov and CLUE-S) and integrated them separately to habitat quality modelling using the integrated valuation of environmental services and trade-offs model. With this we aimed to provide a reference for future implementations of ecological restoration work and adjustments of land-use policies for decision-makers. The estimations showed that habitat quality declined from 2004 to 2028 because of the continuous increase in residential land and traffic area, whereas other land types continued to decline. Furthermore with this study we provide a new method for monitoring and simulating habitat quality.

Single cell protein production from food waste using purple non-sulfur bacteria shows economically viable protein products have higher environmental impacts

Landfilling of food waste in the United States is a source of unutilized resources and environmental risks. As cities look to divert food waste from landfills, microorganisms may hold the answer. Purple non-sulfur bacteria are a group of microorganisms that can treat and extract resources from food waste to produce a protein supplement for animal feed. This study includes a life cycle assessment to compare four food waste management scenarios: purple non-sulfur bacteria production offsetting soybean meal production, purple non-sulfur bacteria production offsetting fishmeal and carotenoid production, anaerobic digestion, and landfilling (status quo). Purple non-sulfur bacteria offsetting soybean meal production resulted in significantly reduced environmental impacts compared to landfilling. Specifically, the eutrophication impact, land use, and water use for the soybean meal offset scenario were 141 kg N equivalents/day, 96 ha, and 120,000 L/day lower than landfilling, respectively. However, the low value of soybean meal limits the economic viability of this scenario. When high-value fishmeal and carotenoids were the offset products, there was an increase in value of $0.023/kg FW treated over landfill disposal of food waste. Offset fishmeal and carotenoids are not without environmental tradeoffs, most significantly with respect to eutrophication and global warming. This study then demonstrated that determining maximal growth rates to a PNSB photobioreactor, growing PNSB microorganisms on sunlight, and identifying the degree to which PNSB carotenoids can replace carotenoids in fish food were plausible lines of research to improve environmental and/or economic viability of the process. The life cycle assessment developed here can inform decision making for food waste management and guide research to improve purple non-sulfur bacteria production.

ESPRES: A web application for interactive analysis of multiple pressures in aquatic ecosystems

ESPRES (Efficient Strategies for anthropogenic Pressure Reduction in European waterSheds) is a web-based Decision Support System (DSS) designed to explore management options for achieving environmental targets in European freshwaters. The tool integrates multi-objective optimization (MOO) algorithms for selecting the best management options in a river basin and models assessing the consequent changes in the water quantity (water flow) and quality (nutrient concentration). The MOO engine identifies Pareto front strategies that are trade-offs between environmental objectives for water bodies and the effort required for reducing the pressures. The web interface provides tools to set the effort perceived by different river basin stakeholders considering technical feasibility, political difficulty, and social acceptability of the alternative options. The environmental impact of management options (scenarios) is assessed with models developed at the European scale. ESPRES enables comparison of management solutions and allows quantifying environmental and socio-economic trade-offs inherent to the decision making process.

Environmental trade-offs associated with bioenergy from agri-residues in sub-tropical regions: A case study of the Colombian coffee sector

The coffee sector generates vast amounts of residues along its value chain. Crop residues, like coffee stems, are burned in the field, used for domestic cooking or coffee drying in processing plants having significant environmental and health implication to rural communities. This research investigated the environmental impacts of replacing current practices with modern bioenergy applications in the Colombian coffee sector. A biomass gasification system to produce decentralised energy from coffee stems was considered, and the environmental impacts of such bioenergy implementation were evaluated. A lifecycle assessment was conducted to quantify the environmental performance of this bioenergy system and compare it to current residues uses and energy needs that feature small-to large-scale coffee farms. The results show that deploying modern bioenergy could result in reductions in 48–86% greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and up to 98% less particulate matter formation when current practices and fossil-based energy are replaced. However, negative impacts should be considered as substituting grid electricity, largely generated from hydro-electricity, could increase GHGs by 68% and fossil fuel consumption by 73%. The results also show the relevance of understanding the environmental performance of bioenergy systems compared to reference scenarios; this allowed to evaluate and identify environmental trade-offs from modern bioenergy implementations. To maximise benefits and minimise the limitations of these systems, it is important to conduct whole-system assessments that inform on the wider environmental impacts of using agri-residues for bioenergy generation in a region- and system-specific context.

Impacts of urbanization and landscape pattern on habitat quality using OLS and GWR models in Hangzhou, China

Abstract China has experienced the most serious habitat degradation, especially in fast-growing metropolis cities. Although increasing attentions have been brought to this issue, we still lack the understanding of the quantitative impacts of urbanization and landscape pattern on habitats. In this study, we used the “Integrated Valuation of Environmental Services and Trade-off” (InVEST) model to evaluate the habitat quality in Hangzhou city. We further employed spatial auto-correlation to analyze its spatiotemporal pattern variation characteristics. Finally, the ordinary least squares (OLS) and geographically weighted regression (GWR) models were used to explore the impacts of urbanization and landscape pattern change on habitat quality. The results show that the habitat quality index of Hangzhou decreased from 0.608 to 0.577 during 2004–2015, and these areas mainly located around the suburb decreased significantly. The spatial distribution of habitat quality showed significantly positive spatial auto-correlation, and the overall spatial auto-correlation degree of the habitat quality increased during this time. Rapid urbanization has significant negative effects on habitat quality in various areas, while the magnitude and direction of the impacts of landscape pattern on habitat quality differed in time and space. These results provide decision-making criteria for formulating differential urban development policies and landscape management measures for urban ecological sustainability.

Decision scenarios using ecosystem services for land allocation optimization across Gharehsoo watershed in northern Iran

Abstract The primary objective of this study was to use ecosystem services in land allocation across Gharehsoo watershed in Golestan Province, north of Iran. Hence, land suitability was assessed using multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) methods to develop forestry, agriculture, range management, construction, and conservation land uses. Ecosystem services including water yield, habitat quality, and aesthetic quality were also quantified using integrated valuation of environmental services and tradeoffs (InVEST) and MCE methods. Next, the land allocation was investigated under five scenarios developed based on the land suitability and ecosystem services, namely land suitability, water yield, habitat quality, aesthetic quality and integration scenarios. The scenarios were then implemented using particle swarm optimization algorithm and compared to each other, based on the spatial land use variability and land use fragmentation. The results revealed that there is an obvious difference between the northern and southern parts of the region in terms of their land suitability and ecosystem services. An almost increasing trend was also observed for the allocated area to forestry, range management, and conservation land uses in the following order of scenarios: land suitability, aesthetic quality, water yield, integration, and habitat quality. However, an almost decreasing trend was obtained for agriculture and construction land uses in the same order of scenarios. Besides, range management and agriculture land uses had the highest and lowest spatial variability in all the scenarios, respectively. The results also clarified that the land use fragmentation decreased more in the water yield scenario than the other scenarios. This study indicated that using ecosystem services in land allocation can improve land use pattern and arrangement, consequently, helping take into account the ecosystem conditions in land use planning. In conclusion, this approach can help land managers to make appropriate decisions for maintaining ecosystem services in any region.

Economic and environmental sustainability of maize-wheat rotation production when substituting mineral fertilizers with manure in the North China Plain

Substituting mineral fertilizers with manure has been promoted to enrich soil fertility and maintain field productivity in agricultural production systems. However, there is limited information regarding the effect of substituting mineral-N with manure on eco-efficiency (economic and environmental trade-offs) from a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) perspective. This study investigated the eco-efficiency of maize-wheat rotation production under three fertilization strategies: mineral fertilizer NPK (CK), substituting 50% of mineral-N with solid manure (SM + NK), and substituting 50% of mineral-N with liquid manure (LM + NP) in the North China Plain. The economic profits were evaluated based on the prevailing market prices of inputs, outputs, and services. The potential environmental impacts were assessed by the LCA approach. The eco-efficiency was evaluated as the ratio of economic profit to individual environmental impact categories. The results from the economic analysis and the LCA showed that, compared with CK, the economic profit increased by 17.2% and 19.1%, while the environmental impacts at the endpoint level decreased by 24.6% and 37.9% under SM + NK and LM + NP, respectively. Additionally, the eco-efficiencies under SM + NK and LM + NP at the endpoint level were calculated to be 55.4% and 91.7%, respectively, higher than CK. Overall, the results suggested that substituting 50% of mineral-N with manure, especially liquid manure, had a great potential for sustainable maize-wheat rotation production in the North China Plain.

Application of InVEST habitat quality module in spatially vulnerability assessment of natural habitats (case study: Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iran).

There has been a growing pressure of human activities, especially road network, on natural habitats of the world, which has led to habitat degradation and loss of ecosystem services. To mitigate the impacts of human activities, appropriate studies quantifying ecosystem services and assessing ecological impacts of road network are essential. The main goal of this study was modeling habitat quality and habitat degradation of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province in the southwestern part of Iran, which is among the most important habitats for wild sheep (Ovis orientalis) classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. In this study, we used the habitat quality module of the InVEST software (Integrated Valuation of Environmental Services and Tradeoffs), which was driven from land use/cover data, information on anthropogenic threats, and expert knowledge. We tested the reliability of the habitat quality values by comparing them with the distribution map of wild sheep obtained from the Department of the Environment. Then, to have a more comprehensive assessment of the roads' effects on the natural habitats of this province, considering ecosystem services model, the Spatial Road Disturbance Index (SPROADI) was applied as a landscape index. The results of this study revealed that the east and north eastern parts of the study area which were among the most suitable habitats for wild sheep were highly affected by road network. Overall, findings of our study provided useful information on the spatially explicit distribution of habitat quality and degradation which were a valuable input for conservation planning and enhancing ecosystem services.

Quantifying the Environmental Impacts of Cookstove Transitions: A Societal Exergy Analysis Based Model of Energy Consumption and Forest Stocks in Honduras

Unsustainable consumption of biofuels contributes to deforestation and climate change, while household air pollution from burning solid biofuels in homes results in millions of premature deaths globally every year. Honduras, like many low and medium Human Development Index countries, depends on primary solid biofuels for more than 30% of its primary energy supply (as of 2013). We conducted a societal exergy analysis and developed a forest stock model for Honduras for 1971–2013 and used the results to model an energy transition from traditional wood stoves to either improved efficiency wood cookstoves or modern fuel cookstoves (using Electricity or Liquefied petroleum gas) over the period 2013–2050. The exergy analysis and forest model enabled quantification of the environmental tradeoffs between the improved efficiency and fuel switching scenarios. We find that the continued reliance on wood within both the existing and improved wood cookstove scenarios would exhaust forest stocks by 2050, though improved efficiency could reduce national greenhouse gas emissions. Modern fuel cookstoves would reduce household air pollution, emissions, and deforestation. However, the best alternative to successfully reduce household air pollution, GHG emissions, and deforestation is a rapid switch to electric stoves with significant investment in renewable-based electricity.

An evaluation of the cost-competitiveness of maritime fuels – a comparison of heavy fuel oil and methanol (renewable and natural gas) in Iceland

Alternative fuels have been proposed to ensure compliance with the increasingly more stringent emission standards proposed by the International Maritime Organization. In addition, the Icelandic government aims to introduce 10% renewable energy into the maritime sector before 2030, as well as eventually phasing out the use of heavy fuel oil (HFO). This paper conducts an extended cost-competitiveness comparison concerning three fuels: conventional methanol (NG), renewable methanol (RN) and HFO in the context of the Icelandic maritime sector. NG, RN and HFO are compared and evaluated under three scenarios (low, medium and high) for fuel prices between 2018 and 2050, and three scenarios (low, medium and high) for the external costs of fuel consumption. The methodology for estimating external costs involved Impact Pathway Analysis for emissions of sulphur dioxide, nitrous oxide, particulate matter and non-methane volatile organic compounds, and increasing shadow prices for the costs of greenhouse gas emissions. The application of this methodology provides new information about the economic and environmental trade-offs between the three fuel types. In our findings, excluding external costs, HFO emerges as the most cost-competitive option. However, when the externalities of fuel consumption are monetised and added to the fuel price, NG is the most cost-competitive option when high values are assumed for external costs. RN is the most expensive option according to all trajectories for fuel prices and external costs, not becoming more cost-competitive than HFO under any scenario until the 2040s. Therefore, on cost criteria alone, it is improbable that the fuel will contribute to Iceland's 10% renewable energy goal in the maritime sector before 2030 without subsidies or renewable marine fuel quotas.

Is the beneficial use of wood ash environmentally beneficial? A screening‐level life cycle assessment and uncertainty analysis

AbstractIn this paper, a screening‐level life cycle assessment (LCA) approach is used to compare the potential environmental benefits and tradeoffs of different management options for wood ash, namely, agricultural land application, forest soil amendment, use in forest roads, use in concrete and mortar, and landfilling. Uncertainty analyses are used to evaluate the generalizability of the results obtained. Although decisions regarding the selection of a beneficial use option are site‐specific and depend on available local markets and wood ash characteristics, this study shows that it is possible to draw a few general conclusions from the application of LCA. All beneficial use (BU) options showed lower environmental indicator scores than those associated with landfilling, in addition to net potential environmental benefits. From an environmental perspective, results suggest that, only in a few situations, beneficially using wood ash might not produce potential net environmental benefits but would still be preferred over landfilling, and in a very few cases, landfilling would be preferred over a BU option. For instance, net environmental benefits may be compromised if wood ash needs to be transported over long distances before it can be beneficially used. Out of the four BU options evaluated, the use of wood ash in concrete to replace Portland cement showed the greatest potential environmental benefits. However, the application of wood ash on agricultural or forest land showed greater environmental benefits than the use in concrete in cases where both its liming and fertilizing potentials are assumed to be achieved at the same time.

Assessing the environmental impact and payback of carbon nanotube supported CO2 capture technologies using LCA methodology

Climate change caused by excessive CO2 emissions in the atmosphere has attracted widespread public concern in recent years. Current industrial methods generally utilize monoethanolamine for CO2 capture; however, the CO2 regeneration requires a high temperature and energy demand during every adsorption/desorption process, along with material losses. Many solid amines with high capture capacity and stability are developed as adsorbents to overcome the limitations. However, the environmental impacts caused by adsorbents themselves are not holistically considered and discussed; meanwhile, material syntheses and consumptions are also associated with CO2 emission. To determine the environmental impacts and identify hotspots of novel CO2 capture adsorbents, two carbon nanotube supported polyethyleneimine, physically adsorbed and covalently bonded, were compared with traditional monoethanolamine method using life cycle assessment. The carbon payback periods were also analyzed to gain understanding on whether the currently evaluated novel materials are suitable for industrial application. Results suggest that, material usage, especially carbon nanotubes, contributes the majority of the overall environmental impacts for both types of carbon nanotube supported polyethyleneimine. Meanwhile, their carbon payback periods are over 40 times longer than monoethanolamine during the synthesis phase. However, the energy consumption of physically adsorbed polyethyleneimine saves up to 60% compared to monoethanolamine in every adsorption/desorption cycle due to its lower heat capacity. In addition, the rate of cumulative CO2 remission for carbon nanotube supported polyethyleneimine is twice higher than monoethanolamine, indicating the potential application for industrial CO2 capture. Overall, our study indicates that current status of solid amine has a potential in CO2 capture, but requires much improvements. Future research should pay attention on decreasing the initial material synthesis and increasing the product life time due to their high environmental tradeoffs. Meanwhile, our study highlights that unilateral emphasis of the CO2 capture efficiency by novel materials may not be adequate, comprehensive considerations should be focused on the comparison throughout material life cycles including use and preparation phases.

Dynamic mechanism between human activities and ecosystem services: A case study of Qinghai lake watershed, China

Abstract Human activities seriously threaten the structure and function of ecosystems. Therefore, to establish a bridge between requirements of humans and provision of ecosystem services is crucial for regional ecological security, sustainable development and human well-being. In this study, the human footprint index of Qinghai lake watershed (QHLW) from 2010 to 2018 was calculated. Subsequently, five ecosystem services including carbon storage, habitat quality, nitrogen and phosphorus load, soil erosion and water yield were simulated and analyzed using the Integrated Valuation of Environmental Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model. Finally, the impact of human footprint on ecosystem services is discussed. The results show that human activity was increasing in the QHLW from 2010 to 2018, with significant spatial heterogeneity. Carbon storage remained unchanged in the area of 90% of the total. The area of habitat quality variation accounted for 4.29% of the total area. Nitrogen load, phosphorus load and water yield presented an upward trend from 2010 to 2018. Approximately 10.38% of the total area experienced the reduction of soil erosion. Anthropogenic variables do affect the provisioning of ecosystem services. Nitrogen and phosphorus load increased with the enhancement of human activities. However, carbon storage, habitat quality and soil erosion were decreasing with the increase of human activities. Human activities affected water yield by increasing water consumption and modifying surface permeability.

Comparative environmental life cycle assessment of several powertrain types for cars and buses in France for two driving cycles: “worldwide harmonized light vehicle test procedure” cycle and urban cycle

PurposeEnvironmental assessments in the transportation sector are often lacking in transparency and completeness. In this article, the environmental trade-offs in road passenger transportation between conventional vehicles and electrified vehicles are compared, using life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. Hence, the relevance of a massive electrification approach can be questioned. Assessing a set of current midsize passenger cars and buses allows for investigation of potential environmental issues. This is the first detailed LCA concerning several hybridization levels for cars and buses, and it is based on real consumption data for two traffic conditions.MethodsWe focused on the ISO standards (ISO 2006a, b) and analyzed the energy carriers’ life cycle and the vehicle’s life cycle. The functional unit is clearly defined as the transportation of one passenger over 1 km in specific driving conditions from a point A to a point B, without prejudice toward the path taken. Vehicle specifications were derived based on the available manufacturers’ data, literature, and French Institute of Petroleum (IFPEN) experts. For the use stage, two driving cycles were assessed: the “worldwide harmonized light vehicles test procedure” (WLTP) cycle and an urban cycle. France was selected as the study area, and a sensitivity analysis was performed based on a European electricity charging mix for electrified vehicles.Results and discussionBattery electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) exhibit the highest climate change (CC) mitigation potential, provided that the electricity mix has low carbon and that the PHEV is used with a fully-charged battery. With these conditions, PHEVs can perform even better than EVs. In that regard, PHEVs using only a thermic engine perform the worst in regard to CC indicator. It is also worth mentioning that electric buses are the best solution in urban traffic conditions for decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. Among powertrains, the electrified powertrains are even more important when performing in urban cycles. For other environmental indicators, such as particulate matter emissions, EVs perform worse than conventional thermic vehicles.ConclusionsThe results underline the importance of considering vehicles’ life cycles for LCA in the transportation sector and the need for multicriteria environmental analysis. Therefore, electrification of the transportation sector should not be driven by a single CC indicator, as this may generate potential environmental drawbacks. It is also crucial to adapt public policies to the local context because the results are highly sensitive to the electricity charging mix.