scholarly journals Black Soldier Fly Diet Impacts Soil Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Frass Applied as Fertilizer

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Sophie Rummel ◽  
Lukas Beule ◽  
Michael Hemkemeyer ◽  
Sanja Annabell Schwalb ◽  
Florian Wichern
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Strong Increase ◽  
Functional Genes ◽  
Ammonia Oxidizing Bacteria ◽  
Black Soldier Fly ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Application Rates ◽  
C And N ◽  
The Impact

Increased global production of animal-based protein results in high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other adverse consequences for human and planetary health. Recently, commercial insect rearing has been claimed a more sustainable source of animal protein. However, this system also leaves residues called frass, which—depending on the insect diet—is rich in carbon (C) and nitrogen (N), and could thus be used as fertilizer in agriculture. The impact of this kind of fertilizer on soil GHG emissions is yet unknown. Therefore, we investigated the effect of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens L.) frass derived from a carbohydrate (Carb-) or a protein (Prot-) based diet applied at two different application rates to an arable soil on C and N fluxes and microbial properties in a 40-day incubation experiment. CO2, N2O, NO, N2, CH4, water extractable organic C (WEOC), and inorganic N were continuously measured quantitatively. At the end of the incubation, microbial biomass (MB), stoichiometry, community composition, and abundance of functional genes were assessed. Along with a strong increase in WEOC and CO2, Carb-frass caused strong initial N2O emissions associated with high N and C availability. In contrast, Prot-frass showed lower CO2 emissions and N2O release, although soil nitrate levels were higher. At the end of incubation, MB was significantly increased, which was more pronounced following Carb-frass as compared to Prot-frass application, and at higher amendment rates. Fungal abundance increased most from both frass types with an even stronger response at higher application rates, whereas bacterial abundance rose following Carb-frass as compared to Prot-application. Abundance of functional genes related to ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and archaea were enhanced by high frass application but did not clearly differ between frass types. C use efficiency of microorganisms, as revealed by the metabolic quotient, was most strongly reduced in the high Prot-frass application rate. Overall, insect diet influenced available C and N in frass and thus affected mineralization dynamics, GHG emissions, and microbial growth. Overall, emissions were very high undermining the potential environmental benefit of insect based protein production and calling for more detailed analyses before frass is widely applied in agriculture.

scholarly journals Impacts of Autonomous Vehicles on Greenhouse Gas Emissions—Positive or Negative?

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. 5567
Author(s):  
Moneim Massar ◽  
Imran Reza ◽  
Syed Masiur Rahman ◽  
Sheikh Muhammad Habib Abdullah ◽  
Arshad Jamal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Significant Contribution ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Interval Estimate ◽  
Modal Shift ◽  
Vehicle Mile Travel ◽  
Emission Changes ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact

The potential effects of autonomous vehicles (AVs) on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are uncertain, although numerous studies have been conducted to evaluate the impact. This paper aims to synthesize and review all the literature regarding the topic in a systematic manner to eliminate the bias and provide an overall insight, while incorporating some statistical analysis to provide an interval estimate of these studies. This paper addressed the effect of the positive and negative impacts reported in the literature in two categories of AVs: partial automation and full automation. The positive impacts represented in AVs’ possibility to reduce GHG emission can be attributed to some factors, including eco-driving, eco traffic signal, platooning, and less hunting for parking. The increase in vehicle mile travel (VMT) due to (i) modal shift to AVs by captive passengers, including elderly and disabled people and (ii) easier travel compared to other modes will contribute to raising the GHG emissions. The result shows that eco-driving and platooning have the most significant contribution to reducing GHG emissions by 35%. On the other side, easier travel and faster travel significantly contribute to the increase of GHG emissions by 41.24%. Study findings reveal that the positive emission changes may not be realized at a lower AV penetration rate, where the maximum emission reduction might take place within 60–80% of AV penetration into the network.

Impacts of Government Policies, Fuel Cell Cost, and Battery Cost on Greenhouse Gas Emission of Light-Duty Vehicles

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Swithin S. Razu ◽  
Shun Takai
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emission ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Government Policies ◽  
Alternative Fuel Vehicles ◽  
Enterprise Model ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

The aim of this paper is to study the impact of public government policies, fuel cell cost, and battery cost on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the US transportation sector. The model includes a government model and an enterprise model. To examine the effect on GHG emissions that fuel cell and battery cost has, the optimization model includes public policy, fuel cell and battery cost, and a market mix focusing on the GHG effects of four different types of vehicles, 1) gasoline-based 2) gasoline-electric hybrid or alternative-fuel vehicles (AFVs), 3) battery-electric (BEVs) and 4) fuel-cell vehicles (FCVs). The public policies taken into consideration are infrastructure investments for hydrogen fueling stations and subsidies for purchasing AFVs. For each selection of public policy, fuel cell cost and battery cost in the government model, the enterprise model finds the optimum vehicle design that maximizes profit and updates the market mix, from which the government model can estimate GHG emissions. This paper demonstrates the model using FCV design as an illustrative example.

Effect of wheat varieties and growth regulators on soil greenhouse gas emissions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elsbe von der Lancken ◽  
Victoria Nasser ◽  
Katharina Hey ◽  
Stefan Siebert ◽  
Ana Meijide
Keyword(s):  
Winter Wheat ◽  
Grain Yield ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Growth Regulators ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Closed Chamber ◽  
Wheat Varieties ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Modern Varieties

<p>The need to sustain global food demand while mitigating greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions is a challenge for agricultural production systems. Since the reduction of GHGs has never been a breeding target, it is still unclear to which extend different crop varieties will affect GHG emissions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of N-fertilization and of the use of growth regulators applied to three historical and three modern varieties of winter wheat on the emissions of the three most important anthropogenic GHGs, i.e. carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>), methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) and nitrous oxide (N<sub>2</sub>O). Furthermore, we aimed at identifying which combination of cultivars and management practises could mitigate GHG emissions in agricultural systems without compromising the yield. GHG measurements were performed using the closed chamber method in a field experiment located in Göttingen (Germany) evaluating three historical and three modern winter wheat varieties, with or without growth regulators under two fertilization levels (120 and 240 kg nitrogen ha<sup>-1</sup>). GHG measurements were carried out for 2 weeks following the third nitrogen fertilizer application (where one third of the total nitrogen was applied), together with studies on the evolution of mineral nitrogen and dissolved organic carbon in the soil. Modern varieties showed significantly higher CO<sub>2</sub> emissions (i.e. soil and plant respiration; +23 %) than historical varieties. The soils were found to be a sink for CH<sub>4,</sub> but CH<sub>4</sub> fluxes were not affected by the different treatments. N<sub>2</sub>O emissions were not significantly influenced by the variety age or by the growth regulators, and emissions increased with increasing fertilization level. The global warming potential (GWP) for the modern varieties was 7284.0 ± 266.9 kg CO<sub>2-eq</sub> ha<sup>-1</sup>. Even though the GWP was lower for the historic varieties (5939.5 ± 238.2 kg CO<sub>2</sub>-<sub>eq</sub> ha<sup>-1</sup>), their greenhouse gas intensity (GHGI), which relates GHG and crop yield, was larger (1.5 ± 0.3 g CO<sub>2</sub>-<sub>eq</sub> g<sup>-1</sup> grain), compared to the GHGI of modern varieties (0.9 ± 0.0 g CO<sub>2</sub>-<sub>eq</sub> g<sup>-1</sup> grain), due to the much lower grain yield in the historic varieties. Our results suggest that in order to mitigate GHG emissions without compromising the grain yield, the best management practise is to use modern high yielding varieties with growth regulators and a fertilization scheme according to the demand of the crop.</p>

Silicon fertilizer and biochar effects on plant and soil PhytOC concentration and soil PhytOC stability and fractionation in subtropical bamboo plantations

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chengpeng Huang ◽  
Li Wang ◽  
Xiaoqiang Gong ◽  
Zhangting Huang ◽  
Miaorong Zhou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fertilizer Application ◽  
Moso Bamboo ◽  
Pool Size ◽  
Phyllostachys Pubescens ◽  
Soil System ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil Organic Nitrogen ◽  
Plant Soil ◽  
Application Rates ◽  
The Impact

<p>The use of exogenous silicon (Si) amendments, such as Si fertilizers and biochar, can effectively increase crop Si uptake and the formation of phytoliths, which are siliceous substances that are abundant in numerous plant species. Phytolith-occluded carbon (C) (PhytOC) accumulation in soil plays an important role in long-term soil organic C (SOC) storage. Nevertheless, the effects of both Si fertilizer and biochar application on PhytOC sequestration in forest plant-soil systems have not been studied. We investigated the impact of Si fertilizer and biochar applications on 1) the PhytOC pool size, the solubility of plant and soil phytoliths, and soil PhytOC in soil physical fractions (light (LFOM) and heavy fractions of organic matter (HFOM)) in Moso bamboo (<em>Phyllostachys pubescens</em>) forests; and 2) the relationships among plant and soil PhytOC concentrations and soil properties. We used a factorial design with three Si fertilizer application rates: 0 (S0), 225 (S1) and 450 (S2) kg Si ha<sup>−1</sup>, and two biochar application rates: 0 (B0) and 10 (B1) t ha<sup>−1</sup>. The concentrations of PhytOC in the bamboo plants and topsoil (0–10 cm) increased with increasing Si fertilizer addition, regardless of biochar application. Biochar addition increased the soil PhytOC pool size, as well as the LFOM- and HFOM-PhytOC fractions, regardless of Si fertilizer application. The Si fertilizer application increased or had no effect on soil phytolith solubility with or without biochar application, respectively. Soil PhytOC was correlated with the concentration of soil organic nitrogen (R<sup>2</sup>=0.32), SOC (R<sup>2</sup>=0.51), pH (R<sup>2</sup>=0.28), and available Si (R<sup>2</sup>=0.23). Furthermore, Si fertilizer application increased plant and soil PhytOC by increasing soil available Si. Moreover, biochar application increased soil PhytOC concentration in LFOM-PhytOC and the unstable fraction of PhytOC. We conclude that Si fertilizer and biochar application promoted PhytOC sequestration in the plant-soil system and changed its distribution in physical fractions in the Moso bamboo plantation in subtropical China.</p>

Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the Petroleum Industry

2017 ◽  
pp. 213-241
Author(s):  
Lidia Hrnčević
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Global Industry ◽  
High Emission ◽  
The Impact

Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions occur, more or less, in all aspects of the petroleum industry's activities. Besides the direct emissions of some GHG, the petroleum industry is also characterised with high energy intensity usually followed by emissions of adverse gases, especially at old facilities, and also the products with high emission potential. Being the global industry and one of the major players on global market, the petroleum industry is also subjected to global regulatory provisions regarding GHG emissions. In this chapter, the impact of global climate change on the petroleum industry is discussed. The emissions from the petroleum industry are analysed with a special focus on greenhouse gases that occur in petroleum industry activities and types and sources of emissions from the petroleum industry activities. In addition, recommendations for estimation, monitoring, and reductions of GHG emissions from the petroleum industry are given.

scholarly journals Implications of potential future grand solar minimum for ozone layer and climate

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavle Arsenovic ◽  
Eugene Rozanov ◽  
Julien Anet ◽  
Andrea Stenke ◽  
Thomas Peter
Keyword(s):  
Solar Activity ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Solar Minimum ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Ozone Production ◽  
22Nd Century ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Continued anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are expected to cause further global warming throughout the 21st century. Understanding potential interferences with natural forcings is thus of great interest. Here we investigate the impact of a recently proposed 21st century grand solar minimum on atmospheric chemistry and climate using the SOCOL3-MPIOM chemistry-climate model with interactive ocean. We examine several model simulations for the period 2000–2199, following the greenhouse gas scenario RCP4.5, but with different solar forcings: the reference simulation is forced by perpetual repetition of solar cycle 23 until the year 2199, whereas the grand solar minimum simulations assume strong declines in solar activity of 3.5 and 6.5 W m−2 with different durations. Decreased solar activity is found to yield up to a doubling of the GHG induced stratospheric and mesospheric cooling. Under the grand solar minimum scenario tropospheric temperatures are also projected to decrease. On the global scale the reduced solar forcing compensates at most 15 % of the expected greenhouse warming at the end of 21st and around 25 % at the end of 22nd century. The regional effects are predicted to be stronger, in particular in northern high latitude winter. In the stratosphere, the reduced incoming ultraviolet radiation leads to less ozone production by up to 8 %, which overcompensates the anticipated ozone increase due to reduced stratospheric temperatures and an acceleration of the Brewer-Dobson circulation. This, in turn, leads to a delay in total ozone column recovery from anthropogenic chlorine-induced depletion, with a global ozone recovery to the pre-ozone hole values happening only upon completion of the grand solar minimum in the 22nd century or later.

scholarly journals Total C and N storage and organic C pools of a Red-Yellow Podzolic under conventional and no tillage at the Atlantic Forest Zone, south-eastern Brazil

Soil Research ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 717 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. F. C. Leite ◽  
E. S. Mendonça ◽  
P. L. O. A. Machado ◽  
E. S. Matos
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Soil Management ◽  
Microbial Biomass C ◽  
No Tillage ◽  
Forest Zone ◽  
Organic C ◽  
C Stocks ◽  
C And N ◽  
The Impact

A 15-year experiment in a clayey Red-Yellow Podzolic in the tropical highlands of Viçosa, Brazil, was studied in 2000, aiming to evaluate the impact of different management systems (no tillage, disk plowing, heavy scratcher + disk plowing, and heavy scratched) on the total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), and several organic carbon pools. A natural forest, adjacent to the experimental area, was used as reference. The greatest TOC and TN as well as microbial biomass C (CMB), light fraction C (CFL), and labile organic carbon (CL) stocks were observed in the Atlantic Forest, compared with all other systems. The long-term cultivation (±70 years) of this area, prior to the installation of the experiment, has led to soil degradation, slowing the C recovery. No tillage had the higher C and N stocks and greater CL pool at the surface (0–10 cm), indicating improvement in soil nutrient status, although none of the systems presented potential to sequester C-CO2. Sustainable tropical agricultural systems should involve high residue input and conservative soil management in order to act as a C-CO2 sink. The C stocks in the CMB, CFL, and CL compartments were more reduced in relation to the natural vegetation with higher intensity management than the TOC stocks. This result indicates that these C compartments are more sensitive to changes in the soil management.

Humus, nitrogen and energy balances, and greenhouse gas emissions in a long-term field experiment with compost compared with mineral fertilisation

Soil Research ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Erhart ◽  
Harald Schmid ◽  
Wilfried Hartl ◽  
Kurt-Jürgen Hülsbergen
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Field Experiment ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Organic Matter Content ◽  
C Sequestration ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Positive Balance ◽  
Energy Balances

Compost fertilisation is one way to close material cycles for organic matter and plant nutrients and to increase soil organic matter content. In this study, humus, nitrogen (N) and energy balances, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were calculated for a 14-year field experiment using the model software REPRO. Humus balances showed that compost fertilisation at a rate of 8 t/ha.year resulted in a positive balance of 115 kg carbon (C)/ha.year. With 14 and 20 t/ha.year of compost, respectively, humus accumulated at rates of 558 and 1021 kg C/ha.year. With mineral fertilisation at rates of 29–62 kg N/ha.year, balances were moderately negative (–169 to –227 kg C/ha.year), and a clear humus deficit of –457 kg C/ha.year showed in the unfertilised control. Compared with measured soil organic C (SOC) data, REPRO predicted SOC contents fairly well with the exception of the treatments with high compost rates, where SOC contents were overestimated by REPRO. GHG balances calculated with soil C sequestration on the basis of humus balances, and on the basis of soil analyses, indicated negative GHG emissions with medium and high compost rates. Mineral fertilisation yielded net GHG emissions of ~2000 kg CO2-eq/ha.year. The findings underline that compost fertilisation holds potential for C sequestration and for the reduction of GHG emissions, even though this potential is bound to level off with increasing soil C saturation.

Carbon Footprint Analysis of an Educational Institution

2015 ◽  
Vol 787 ◽  
pp. 187-191
Author(s):  
P.M. Sivaram ◽  
N. Gowdhaman ◽  
D.Y. Ebin Davis ◽  
M. Subramanian
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Carbon Footprint ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emission ◽  
Educational Institution ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Liquefied Petroleum Gas ◽  
Diesel Generator ◽  
Working Paper ◽  
Corporate Carbon Footprint ◽  
The Impact

Global warming and climate change are the foremost environmental challenges facing the world today. It is our responsibility to minimize the consumption of energy and hence reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. Companies choose ‘Carbon Footprint’ as a tool to calculate the greenhouse gas emission to show the impact of their activities on the environment. In this working paper, we assess the carbon foot print of an educational institution and suggest suitable measures for reducing it. Greenhouse gas emitting protocol for an academic institution in terms of tones of equivalent CO2 per year is projected using three basic steps includes planning (assessment of data’s), calculation and estimation of CO2 emitted. The estimation of carbon foot print is calculated by accounting direct emission from sources owned/controlled by the educational institution and from indirect emission i.e. purchased electricity, electricity produced by diesel Generator (DG), transport, cooking (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) and other outsourced distribution. The CO2 absorbed by trees are also accounted. Some of the options are identified in order to reduce CO2 level. The information of corporate carbon footprint helps us identifying the Green House Gases (GHG) emission “hot spots” and identifies where the greatest capacity exists in order to reduce the GHG emissions. The main prioritization goes to transport and then followed by DG, cooking and then electricity. The per capita CO2 emission and the total CO2 emission for a typical educational institution are estimated.

scholarly journals Environmental Changes Produced by Household Consumption

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (18) ◽  
pp. 5730
Author(s):  
Miguel A. Martínez ◽  
Ángeles Cámara
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Household Consumption ◽  
Retail Trade ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Impact

This paper analyzes the impact of the fall in household consumption after an economic crisis in Spain on greenhouse gas emissions. To this end, household consumption is differentiated by the age of the main provider by using a conversion matrix that relates consumption groups to activity sectors. A multisectoral model was used to quantify and compare the environmental impact caused by the consumption of each age group, indicating that the older the age of the main household provider, the smaller the reduction in GHG emissions associated with their consumption. The results facilitate an analysis of how the greenhouse gas emissions of the different sectors of the Spanish economy, associated with the population under study, varied before and after the 2008 crisis, and confirm that the sectors with the greatest reduction in emissions were, in this order, extractive industries, construction, manufacturing industry, wholesale and retail trade and transport and storage. This is relevant for decision making in the field of environmental policies in crises, akin to the one the world is currently experiencing.

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