High Greenhouse Research Articles

Municipal solid waste generation and its compositional assessment for efficient and sustainable infrastructure planning in an intermediate city of Pakistan

ABSTRACT It is imperative to design and operate sustainable solid waste management (SWM) systems in cities based on the results of waste amount and characterization study (WACS). In this work, WACS was conducted and results were used to design an SWM system for an intermediate city of Pakistan. The study revealed that about 110 tons of solid waste per day is generated with a per capita rate of 0.337 kg/day. Around 51.2% of mixed municipal solid waste (MSW) is organic in nature and its non-scientific disposal is resulting in higher greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It was also found that more than 80% of valuables are taken away by the informal sector during the transfer of MSW from the generation source to the dumping site. Ultimate analyses showed that the moisture content (MC) and carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio were 64.23% and 51.14%, respectively. Proximate analysis revealed that moisture and calorific values were 57 % and 3505 BTU/lb., respectively. Based on these results, a material sorting facility (MSF) was proposed, with an estimated investment cost of US $3.64 million. However, the efficiency of the existing collection system is limited to 32 % only. In order to improve the collection efficiency (>90 %), an additional investment of US $1.638 million was estimated with an operations and maintenance (O&M) cost of US $19.25 per ton. Existing non-scientific MSW disposal practices contribute 32,079.61 CO2e tons/year of GHG emissions. The proposed MSF followed by composting is estimated to reduce GHG emissions by 38% to 19,722.38 CO2e tons/year.

Sources of uncertainty in Greenland surface mass balance in the 21st century

Abstract. The surface mass balance (SMB) of the Greenland ice sheet is subject to considerable uncertainties that complicate predictions of sea level rise caused by climate change. We examine the SMB of the Greenland ice sheet in the 21st century with the Bergen Snow Simulator (BESSI) surface energy and mass balance model. To estimate the uncertainty of the SMB, we conduct simulations for four greenhouse gas emission scenarios using the output of a wide range of Earth system models (ESMs) from the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) to force BESSI. In addition, the uncertainty of the SMB simulation is estimated by using 16 different parameter sets in our SMB model. The median SMB across ESMs and parameter sets, integrated over the ice sheet, decreases over time for every emission scenario. As expected, the decrease in SMB is stronger for higher greenhouse gas emissions. The regional distribution of the resulting SMB shows the most substantial SMB decrease in western Greenland for all ESMs, whereas the differences between the ESMs are most pronounced in the north and around the equilibrium line. Temperature and precipitation are the input variables of the snow model that have the largest influence on the SMB and the largest differences between ESMs. In our ensemble, the range of uncertainty in the SMB is greater than in previous studies that used fewer ESMs as forcing. An analysis of the different sources of uncertainty shows that the uncertainty caused by the different ESMs for a given scenario is larger than the uncertainty caused by the climate scenarios. In comparison, the uncertainty caused by the snow model parameters is negligible, leaving the uncertainty of the ESMs as the main reason for SMB uncertainty.

Effects of Climatic Change on the Potential Distribution of Lycoriella Species (Diptera: Sciaridae) of Economic Importance.

Simple SummaryHere, we describe climate change effects on biodiversity, mainly in pest species related to greenhouse production. We used statistical and theoretical methods to describe crops’ vulnerability under worldwide climate change. Some insects (flies) generate economic damage in mushroom, strawberry, and nursery production. We determined potential risk areas for the invasion of three fly species under different climate change scenarios in 2050. Range expansion was determined in the Northern Hemisphere; however, some regions in South America, Africa, and Australia had increases and potentially invasive areas. Our results provide information for farmers, researchers, and politicians for decision-making around production to reduce possible damage caused by pests.Lycoriella species (Sciaridae) are responsible for significant economic losses in greenhouse production (e.g., mushrooms, strawberries, and nurseries). The current distributions of species in the genus are restricted to cold-climate countries. Three species of Lycoriella are of particular economic concern in view of their ability to invade areas in countries across the Northern Hemisphere. We used ecological niche models to determine the potential for range expansion under future climate change scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) in the distribution of these three species of Lycoriella. Stable environmental suitability under climate change was a dominant theme in these species; however, potential range increases were noted in key countries (e.g., USA, Brazil, and China). Our results illustrate the potential for range expansion in these species in the Southern Hemisphere, including some of the highest greenhouse production areas in the world.

Trends and progress in Microalgae-based wastewater treatment technologies: A review

A transformative change is underway in wastewater treatment as the world aims at meeting Sustainable Development Goal 6 in 2030, and the conventional wastewater treatment processes have high energy consumption and greenhouse emissions. Microalgae-based wastewater treatment process has emerged as an innovative technology that can reach the demand for lowering energy consumption, mitigating climate change, and recycling resources. This review provides an overview of the basic theories of microalgae-based wastewater treatment processes, microalgae species commonly used, impact factors of microalgae cultivation, the conventional and hybrid microalgae-based wastewater treatment systems. Moreover, suggestions are proposed for further research and development.

Life Cycle Assessment of Heaven Mushroom Product

Climate change affects all regions around the world, so efforts to minimize the environmental impacts of climate change have high importance. The aim of this study is to evaluate the environmental impacts on the production of heaven mushroom product at the Ban Tai Khod community in Rayong, Thailand. In this study, cradle to gate was selected as the system boundary and functional unit from the life cycle assessment method. The results found that the process of building a mushroom house has the highest greenhouse gas emissions of 1, 496.609 kgCO2eq. The mushroom cubes mixing process has the highest energy consumption throughout the production process, requiring an energy consumption of 5.595 kWh. The greenhouse gas is released amount 3, 588.362 kgCO2eq. throughout this process. Additionally, the payback period of the heaven mushroom product is 0.92 years.

Household electricity demand, the intrinsic flexibility index and UK wholesale electricity market prices

During peak electricity demand periods, prices in wholesale markets can be up to nine times higher than during off-peak periods. This is because if a vast number of users is consuming electricity at the same time, power plants with higher greenhouse gas emissions and higher system costs are typically activated. In the UK, the residential sector is responsible for about one third of overall electricity demand and up to 60% of peak demand. This paper presents an analysis of the 2014–2015 Office for National Statistics National Time Use Survey with a view to derive an intrinsic flexibility index based on timing of residential electricity demand. It analyses how the intrinsic flexibility varies compared with wholesale electricity market prices. Findings show that spot prices and intrinsic flexibility to shift activities vary harmoniously throughout the day. Reflections are also drawn on the application of this research to work on demand side flexibility.

A Brief Understanding on Smart Grid Technology

Environmental destruction that is marked by high CO2 level or greenhouse gas emissions due to excessive use of fossil fuels is a serious challenge that must be minimized immediately. One of the most prominent impact is the destruction of natural ecosystems such as forest fires due to very high temperature, rising sea level, flash flood, melting of iceberg in the north and south poles and uncertain natural climates. From the energy sector that contribute most to global warming is the power generation sector. Currently there are still many power plants that use fossil fuels such as petroleum and coal as the main source of turbine drive in generating electrical energy. The burning results certainly produce CO2 gas that contributes to increase levels of global warming. In response to the crucial issue, developed countries make an effort to reduce the impact of greenhouse gases by conducting research and utilization of renewable energy as an environmentally friendly source of energy such as wind energy and solar energy. Renewable energy is capable of generating electrical energy without generating and increasing greenhouse gases. Current renewable energy utilization trends continue to increase which contributes to the birth of the smart grid concept. So the introduction of smart grid technology is a necessity to reduce the impact of global warming while encouraging efficiency, reliability and effective governance in the supply of electrical energy.

Radiocarbon analysis reveals that vegetation facilitates the release of old methane in a temperate raised bog

Peatlands have accumulated vast quantities of organic carbon over thousands of years but it is unclear how these sensitive ecosystems will respond to future climate change. If emissions of methane from peatlands increase, then they may contribute increasingly towards climatic warming due to the higher greenhouse warming potential of this gas. We investigated the radiocarbon concentration of methane emissions from a temperate bog over 1.5 years, which we supported with measurements of the surface flux of methane and carbon dioxide. The radiocarbon content of methane emissions varied greatly, from modern (i.e. fixed from the atmosphere within recent decades) to ~ 1400 years BP. Flux rates of methane were spatially and temporally highly variable. A vegetation clipping experiment showed that plants had a great influence on the carbon isotope composition and flux of methane emitted from the peat surface, consistent with earlier studies showing the key role of plants in peatland methane emissions. When plants were absent, emission rates were 70–94% lower and the radiocarbon age of methane emissions was much younger and less variable. Our radiocarbon measurements show that at this peatland, plant-associated methane emissions contain carbon originally fixed from the atmosphere up to hundreds of years earlier, consistent with a contribution from plant mediated transport of methane sourced from sub-surface layers.

Synthetic Zero Air Reference Material for High Accuracy Greenhouse Gas Measurements.

The purity analysis of zero air is a significant contributor to the uncertainty in preparing reference materials of high impact greenhouse gases, limiting progress toward coherent and comparable measurements required to assess climate trends. We have produced a commutable synthetic zero air reference material with an oxygen, nitrogen, and argon matrix closely matching atmospheric composition. This is the critical step in preventing systematic biases from pressure broadening effects when using these reference materials to calibrate instruments based on optical spectroscopy. The amount fractions of carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide, which are present as minor impurities in the zero air reference material, have been accurately quantified using a novel dilution device that can generate gas mixtures of these components at trace amount fractions. These developments will have a significant impact on advancing the state of the art in high accuracy reference materials and for baseline calibration of spectroscopic instrumentation.

A method for the estimation of greenhouse gas emissions based on road geometric design and its application to South Korea

ABSTRACTSouth Korea has the tenth highest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions worldwide, of which 16% originates from the road sector. Existing estimation methods of road GHG emissions have various limitations, such as low accuracy or the ability to only estimate GHG emissions within a limited area. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a methodology to estimate GHG emissions while considering various geometric designs of roads, including both vertical and horizontal alignment. The developed method is more objective and reliable than existing methodologies that consider only vertical alignment. First, Lamm's theory on travel speed profiles was applied to predict GHG emissions. Then, this study attempted to overcome the limited spatial estimation capacity of existing methods by considering upstream and downstream geometric design parameters simultaneously. Second, this study used the GHG operation mode extracted from the MOtor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES), a modeling system that estimates emissions for mobile sources at the national, county, and project levels for criteria air pollutants, GHGs, and air toxicity. The operation mode includes vehicle type, fuel, and other factors, and is designed to estimate GHG emissions at 1-s intervals. Based on the results of the analysis, the effectiveness of the new method was compared to existing methods using an economic analysis (e.g., cost–benefits from the reduced emissions). This study presents a method for performing sensitive estimations of GHG emissions according to the geometric design of roads, which can be used to collect more accurate data on GHG emissions.

The response of canola cultivars to lipo-chitooligosaccharide (Nod Bj V [C18:1, MeFuc]) and thuricin 17

Lipo-chitooligosaccharides (LCOs) are signal molecules that play a role in initiating the symbiotic legume-rhizobia and arbuscular mycorrhizal processes. Thuricin 17 is a bacteriocin produced by Bacillus thuringiensis strain NEB 17. Previous work has shown that the application of a 10−6 M LCO solution, or a 10−11 M thuricin 17 solution, can stimulate the germination and growth of a wide range of plants. The objectives were: to grow canola cultivar 04C111 under optimal temperature conditions in a greenhouse, and to assess the effect of LCO seed application and spray treatment on 04C111 floral initiation, architecture, and factors that contribute to yield; to assess the effect of a thuricin 17 seed application treatment upon factors that contribute to 04C111 yield in a stressfully high temperature greenhouse system; and to assess the effect of an LCO seed application and spray treatment on Topas floral initiation, architecture, and factors that contribute to yield, and seed quality, in a simulated “cool spring” greenhouse system. According to the 95 % confidence limits, Brassica napus cultivars grown from untreated seed produced 39 % fewer to 1 % fewer branches than plants grown from LCO-treated seed. Application of an LCO foliar spray increased the total of branch lengths per 04C111 plant by 16.93 ± 8.41 cm. Based on the stem-to-branch length ratio, LCO-sprayed 04C111 plants were 68 % less apically dominant than unsprayed plants. Topas plants that were sprayed with LCO produced seed with approximately 4.45 ± 0.23 % more oil (% d.w.) than unsprayed plants. For both cultivars, seed treatment with 10−6 M of LCO produced plants with a higher average sum of primary, secondary, and tertiary branch (≥1 cm) frequencies.

Relationship between Fiscal Subsidies and CO2 Emissions: Evidence from Cross-Country Empirical Estimates

Countries disburse subsidies with various motivations, for example, to promote industrial development, facilitate innovation, support national champions, and ensure redistribution. The devolution of subsidies may however also encourage economic activities leading to climate change related concerns, reflected through higher greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions, if such activities are conducted beyond sustainable point. Through a cross-country empirical analysis involving 131 countries over 1990–2010, the present analysis observes that higher proportional devolution of budgetary subsidies leads to higher CO2 emissions. The countries with higher CO2 emissions are also characterized by higher per capita GDP, greater share of manufacturing sector in their GDP, and higher level of urbanization. In addition, the empirical findings underline the importance of the type of government subsidy devolution on CO2 emission pattern. The analysis underlines the importance of limiting provision of subsidies both in developed and developing countries.

Effects of organic, low input, conventional management practices on soil nematode community under greenhouse conditions

A comparative study of organic, low input, conventional vegetable greenhouse systems was conducted to assess the effect of management practices on the soil nematode community. Bacterivores were the most dominant trophic group in all three systems with a mean proportion of over 80%, followed by omnivore-carnivores. In general, organic management practices increased the abundance of total nematodes, bacterivores, fungivores, and omnivore-carnivores in comparison with low input and conventional management practices. Though inhibitory effects of plant feeders were found in organic and low input systems, these effects were more evident in organic systems. However, small differences were observed in the composition of trophic groups and fauna analysis. All three systems displayed enriched soil conditions and structured food webs. We inferred that the bottom-up effect resulting from organic input in the soil food web may play a more important role than the disruption effects under our high input greenhouse conditions. The Shannon index (H′) and genus dominance (λ) suggested that in greenhouse conditions, excessive manure input would cause a decrease in nematode diversity but increase the dominance, particularly for enrichment opportunists. We concluded that management practices under greenhouse conditions were more influential on nematode biomass (including trophic groups) than community structure.

Sustainable development goal for energy and information and communications technologies

The provision of energy services–such as illumination, thermal comfort, cooking, communications and mobility–is critical to both social and economic good. But the use of fossil fuels in meeting these needs can also lead to higher greenhouse gases emissions, potentially becoming a threat to our well-being. Ironically, the greatest threat is to underdeveloped nations and populations of the most vulnerable geographies of small island developing States. They are either constrained by extreme poverty or limited by expensive energy access. The year 2015 marked a significant milestone in the global debate on energy with United Nations adoption of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including the specific goal on energy (SDG 7) aiming “to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”. SDG 7 also addresses the need to increase energy from renewable sources as well as promote energy efficiency technologies. Consequently, SDG 7 encompasses targets for universal energy access (7.1), renewable energy growth (7.2), energy efficiency improvements (7.3), international cooperation in sustainable energy infrastructure development (7.a) and technology upgrades and expansion of energy systems (7.b).

Serial Transmission of Plant Viruses by Cutting Implements during Grafting

Reciprocal grafts of two tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) cultivars were made by hand using commercial grafting techniques. The razor blade used to cut the rootstock or scion was first contaminated by making a single cut on tomato plants infected with either Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) or Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV). Although no transmission of TSWV was observed in these experiments, ToMV was spread plant to plant through razor blade exposure to this virus. The presence of this virus was confirmed by double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) at 21 days post-inoculation. The highest rate of infection was 25% of the inoculated plants. The greatest number of positive virus assays was found in the first 10 plants of each experiment. These areas contained 84% of the DAS-ELISA-positive plants. Gaps of up to 10 plants occurred during serial inoculation before infection resumed. Random dispersion occurred in two experiments. Similar results were observed whether the contaminated implement was used to cut the rootstock or the scion before graft assembly. This work demonstrates that some viruses from a single contamination can be moved in a serial manner during the grafting process, especially with varieties with minimal or no resistance to viral plant pathogens. Also, visual diagnosis cannot always be relied on as a means of eliminating virus-infected plants, especially when higher greenhouse and annealing temperatures are maintained.

Stakeholders on Meat Production, Meat Consumption and Mitigation of Climate Change: Sweden as a Case

In this paper we analyse and discuss the views of Swedish stakeholders on how to mitigate climate change to the extent it is caused by meat production. The stakeholders include meat producer organisations, governmental agencies with direct influence on meat production, political parties as well as non-governmental organisations. Representatives of twelve organisations were interviewed. Several organisations argued against the mitigation option of reducing beef production despite the higher greenhouse gas intensity of beef compared to pork and chicken meat (according to life cycle analysis). Regarding feed production some organisations proposed use of the best available industrial fertilizers, others were against all use of such fertilizers. Several organizations suggested domestic production of more protein-rich fodder and use of manure for biogas production. Regarding meat consumption the focus was on throwing away less food as waste and on eating less meat but the best (most climate friendly) meat, which was considered to be Swedish meat in contrast to imported meat. There was agreement on many issues. Most disagreement was found regarding political steering. We find many of the stakeholders’ mitigation proposals regarding meat production and consumption acceptable. However, we are to some extent critical to their defence of Swedish beef production. We also point out certain problems with the suggestion to reduce consumption of imported meat but not of domestically produced meat.

국내 에너지다소비건물의 용도별.지역별 온실가스 배출원단위분석 연구

Our country set the mid-term reduction goal of greenhouse gases up to 2020 in accordance with Bali roadmap agreed in 2007 through the negotiation with UNFCCC in 2009 and specified the proper goal as by the Basic Act on Green Growth that went into effect at April, 2010. First of all the enlargement of green building construction has been suggested as a worldwide strategy to achieve the green house gas reduction. Building area is one of most important sectors for the countermeasure of climate change agreement and the achievement of national green house gas reduction goal and the need to reduce its green house gases has been increased accordingly. The objective of the study is to examine the status and characterization of mass energy consumption local governmental buildings` green house gas emissions depending on usage (hotel, school, apartment, hospital) through the green house gas emission source unit analysis. The result indicated that the energy source unit was proportional to green house gas source unit and hotel showed the highest green house gas emission source unit per open area of construction unit, followed by hospital, apartment, and then school. In case of apartment, green house gas emission source unit per open area of construction unit decreased as year went on. Meanwhile school building showed a striking increase in the annual energy source unit.

A CONCEPT FOR REDUCED ENERGY DEMAND OF GREENHOUSES: THE NEXT GENERATION GREENHOUSE CULTIVATION IN THE NETHERLANDS

In high tech greenhouse cultivation like in The Netherlands, large amounts of fossil energy are used to optimize climate conditions like temperature and humidity. To achieve a more sustainable greenhouse horticulture, a considerable reduction in energy use is needed, but tradeoffs with production and quality are not acceptable. Therefore, we developed a novel cultivation system for tomato to meet the goal: reduction of the energy input by 40% from 1.3 to 0.75 GJ.m-2.y-1, maintaining a production level of 60 kg.m-2.y-1. This concept, the Next Generation Greenhouse Cultivation, is based on the intensified use of thermal screens combined with control of humidity, maximizing the use of the integration capacity of the crop, growing at high humidity, improved efficiency of CO2 supply by reduction of ventilation and the use of cooling combined with a heat pump and an aquifer. In this approach, the main element is the prolonged use of screens with a high insulating value (>70%) to reduce the energy demand, combined with a forced ventilation system that injects relatively dry outside air into the greenhouse. The maximal use of the integration capacity of the crop implies a strong relation between daily radiation sum and diurnal mean temperatures, and a large difference between night and day temperatures on sunny days. This reduces the energy input and ventilation rate. Growing at increased humidity, achieved by misting, reduces ventilation rates because of the increased enthalpy of the greenhouse air. When supplying CO2, reduced ventilation results in higher CO2 concentrations and hence a higher energy efficiency. Cooling can be used in combination with a heat pump and an aquifer to reduce the need for fossil fuel. This approach, in which proven technologies are combined, enables growers to implement the elements step by step, leading to an easy acceptance.

Five Year Field Evaluation of Prosopis alba Clones on pH 9–10 Soils in Argentina Selected for Growth in the Greenhouse at Seawater Salinities (45 dS m−1)

Prosopis alba seedlings, that grew at the 45 dS m−1 salinity level in a previous study of growth and survival of Argentine and Peruvian Prosopis, were propagated by rooting cuttings and established in a seed orchard/long term evaluation trial on soils with low salinity (EC 5.1–7.5 dS m−1) but high pH (8.9 to 10.2). A pH gradient occurred in the field with values ranging from pH 9.4 in block 1 to pH 10.3 in block 5. After five years growth, almost all of the clones had a mean height greater than 4 m and one clone was more than 5 m. Ten of the 21 tested clones had significantly greater biomass growth than the three seed propagated check varieties. The broad-sense (i.e., clone mean) heritability was estimated to be 0.45 for biomass, 0.53 for diameter and 0.59 for height indicating that strong genetic gains should be possible by selecting and vegetatively propagating the best genotypes. In the block with the highest pH values, two clones that appear to be P. alba × P. ruscifolia hybrids (i.e., P. vinallilo) had the greatest biomass. Correlations between growth during the last two months in the high salinity hydroponic greenhouse selection system and growth in the field were significant (R2 = 0.262) and positive, although the relationship was negative for putative P. vinallilo clones (R2 = 0.938). The several fold increase in biomass of some of the clones over the three check varieties, suggests that the greenhouse screen was successful in identifying superior salt tolerant clones. Apparently whether the greenhouse seedlings had lesser (~1 cm) to greater (~3 cm) height growth was not as important as just having a healthy live apical meristem. The observed salt tolerance of the putative P. vinalillo clones may prove useful as rootstocks for recently described high pod producing P. alba clones.

Environmental input-output analysis of the New Zealand dairy industry

This work presents data and analysis quantifying the total (direct and indirect) resource use and outputs (products and pollutants) of the New Zealand dairy industry for the year April 1997 to March 1998. It also identifies those sectors supplying the dairy industry which make significant indirect contributions to its total inputs and outputs. Although this data is 14 years old, it is the only large-scale, detailed data available. Further, more modern data can be compared with this baseline data. Comparison with the other major New Zealand food and fibre sectors shows that the dairy farming sector has the highest total water consumption and the highest total effluent. It also has high total land use, electricity use and production of animal methane. The dairy processing sector is water and fuel intensive and has high total water effluent and greenhouse gas emissions. The high resource use and pollutants have to be weighed against the enormous economic value of the dairy sectors.