scholarly journals Assessment of the Feedstock Availability for Covering EU Alternative Fuels Demand

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 740
Author(s):  
Matteo Prussi ◽  
Calliope Panoutsou ◽  
David Chiaramonti
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Alternative Fuels ◽  
Critical Element ◽  
Major Barrier ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Transportation Sector ◽  
Potential Demand ◽  
Consistent Assessment ◽  
Feedstock Availability ◽  
The Eu

Modern economies rely on the efficiency of their transportation sector; however, the environmental impact of the sector remains a growing concern. Among the various proposed solutions, the production and deployment of alternative fuels is a major option. However, concerns exist that the actual availability of sustainable feedstock might lower the current level of ambition. This paper addresses this issue by reviewing recent studies and policy targets, to match forecasts for expected demand and feedstock availability for road, aviation, and maritime sectors in the EU in 2030. The existing literature is fragmented and based on a variety of different approaches, and a consistent assessment of the potential overall demand for transport is still missing. In spite of the challenges posed by the numerous uncertainties, this research provides an estimate of potential European demand for alternative fuels that ranges between 20 and 33 Mtoe. We aimed to answer the question about the availability of sustainable feedstock to cover this potential demand. The analysis confirmed, even under very conservative assumptions, that feedstock may not be the major barrier today. Other issues, such as the feedstock costs, the price volatilities, the existing logistical infrastructures, etc., are relevant aspects contributing to the puzzle. Whilst feedstock is present across European regions, a critical element which requires detailed analysis at the implementation value chain level is the effectiveness of its sustainable mobilisation alongside the synergies and trade-offs that may arise.

scholarly journals The future of Sustainable Biofuels towards the 2°C target: forecasting process, technologies and sector demands

2021 ◽  
Vol 238 ◽  
pp. 08002
Author(s):  
David Chiaramonti ◽  
Giacomo Talluri
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Road Transport ◽  
Transport Sector ◽  
Critical Element ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Passenger Cars ◽  
The Road ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

Introducing sustainable fuels in the different transport fields in the EU is a very challenging goal, but also a clear priority in the EU decarbonization strategy. In fact, the transport sector is extremely rigid and regulated, with consolidated norms and standards and well-defined economics. Adding more oxygenated components to the fuel mix is also limited by the so-called blend-wall: thus, the share of renewable drop-in hydrocarbons has been recently growing worldwide and in the European Union. However, as a large part of these relates to lipids, the supply of sustainable feedstock has become the major critical element of the value chain. Fast-growing demand from new sectors as Aviation also emerged, that together with Heavy Duty and Maritime represent the focus of the EC strategy, complementary to the electrification of the road transport, passenger cars and light duty vehicles. Introducing innovative processes at full commercial scale requires to overcome the Mountain of Death of processes, where the bankability of not yet demonstrated technologies is the core problem. This work addresses the impact of the EU policy scenario, depicting the status of the different process and technologies, both Bio-based and Recycled Carbon, on the Mountain of Death.

scholarly journals The evolution of life cycle assessment in European policies over three decades

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serenella Sala ◽  
Andrea Martino Amadei ◽  
Antoine Beylot ◽  
Fulvio Ardente
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Decision Support ◽  
General Concept ◽  
Life Cycle Thinking ◽  
Environmental Footprint ◽  
Science And Policy ◽  
Policy Domain ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Eu

Abstract Purpose Life cycle thinking (LCT) and life cycle assessment (LCA) are increasingly considered pivotal concept and method for supporting sustainable transitions. LCA plays a relevant role in decision support, for the ambition of a holistic coverage of environmental dimensions and for the identification of hotspots, possible trade-offs, and burden shifting among life cycle stages or impact categories. These features are also relevant when the decision support is needed in policy domain. With a focus on EU policies, the present study explores the evolution and implementation of life cycle concepts and approaches over three decades. Methods Adopting an historical perspective, a review of current European Union (EU) legal acts and communications explicitly mentioning LCT, LCA, life cycle costing (LCC), and environmental footprint (the European Product and Organisation Environmental Footprint PEF/OEF) is performed, considering the timeframe from 1990 to 2020. The documents are categorised by year and according to their types (e.g. regulations, directives, communications) and based on the covered sectors (e.g. waste, energy, buildings). Documents for which life cycle concepts and approaches had a crucial role are identified, and a shortlist of these legal acts and communications is derived. Results and discussion Over the years, LCT and life cycle approaches have been increasingly mentioned in policy. From the Ecolabel Regulation of 1992, to the Green Deal in 2019, life cycle considerations are of particular interest in the EU. The present work analysed a total of 159 policies and 167 communications. While in some sectors (e.g. products, vehicles, and waste) life cycle concepts and approaches have been adopted with higher levels of prescriptiveness, implementation in other sectors (e.g. food and agriculture) is only at a preliminary stage. Moreover, life cycle (especially LCT) is frequently addressed and cited only as a general concept and in a rather generic manner. Additionally, more stringent and rigorous methods (LCA, PEF/OEF) are commonly cited only in view of future policy developments, even if a more mature interest in lifecycle is evident in recent policies. Conclusion The EU has been a frontrunner in the implementation of LCT/LCA in policies. However, despite a growing trend in this implementation, the development of new stringent and mandatory requirements related to life cycle is still relatively limited. In fact, there are still issues to be solved in the interface between science and policy making (such as verification and market surveillance) to ensure a wider implementation of LCT and LCA.

scholarly journals Circular Agreements—Exploring the Role of Agreements and Deals as a Political Tool for a Circular Economy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Johansson
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Alternative Form ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Free Rider Problem ◽  
Political Governance ◽  
The Eu

AbstractA problem for a circular economy, embedded in its policies, tools, technologies and models, is that it is driven by the interests and needs of producers, rather than customers and users. This opinion paper focuses on an alternative form of governance—agreements, which thanks to their bargaining approach brings actors from across the value chain into the policy process. The purpose of this opinion paper is to uncover and analyse the potential of such agreements for a circular economy. Circular agreements aim at increasing the circulation of materials and are an emerging form of political governance within the EU. These agreements have different names, involve different actors and govern in different ways. However, circular agreements seem to work when other types of regulations fail to establish circulation. These agreements bring actors together and offer a platform for negotiating how advantages and disadvantages can be redistributed between actors in a way that is more suitable for a circular economy. However, circular agreements are dependent on other policy instruments to work and can generate a free-rider problem with uninvolved actors. The agreements may also become too detailed and long term, which leads to problem shifting and lock-ins, respectively.

scholarly journals Identifying ‘win-win-win’ futures from inequitable value chain trade-offs: A system dynamics approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 190 ◽  
pp. 103096
Author(s):  
Gregory S. Cooper ◽  
Karl M. Rich ◽  
Bhavani Shankar ◽  
Vinay Rana ◽  
Nazmun N. Ratna ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
System Dynamics ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Trade Offs

scholarly journals Navigating Through the Maze: Practical Constraints in the Implementation of Forest Regulations (FLEGT) in Ghana

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 31
Author(s):  
Gordon Kofi Sarfo-Adu
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Tracking System ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Implementation Challenges ◽  
Technical Errors ◽  
Public Policy Implementation ◽  
Transnational Actors ◽  
The Eu

The European Union Forest Law Enforcement on Governance and Trade (EU-FLEGT) Action Plan seeks to promote widespread sustainable forest management and relies largely on transnational actors and international law in its operationalization. The EU FLEGT sets out EU custom regulation through Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) which is a bilateral agreement between the EU and wood exporting countries with instruments aimed at promoting sustainable practices within the forest resources value chain. Ghana became a signatory to the FLEGT VPA since 2007, as part of the process, it is required to use technology to track timber logging from source to point of export. Issues of networks and inter-agency collaboration and dealing with human elements remain crucial in ensuring effective operationalization. Adopting a qualitative case study design as well as theories and concepts from the public policy implementation literature, this study examines the implementation vagaries of the FLEGT VPA in Ghana. Although the VPA is a laudable idea of using Information Technology (IT) in effectively tracking timber to its original source to ascertain legality or otherwise of the timber, the needed IT infrastructure and resources have not matched up with the goal. Additionally, the VPA implementation is expensive and has come with additional cost to the implementers, The study further observes that the increasing ‘red flags’ that are raised on the Ghana Wood Tracking System is a blend of technical errors emanating from negligence or capacity challenges and human manipulation. This calls for regular consultations and workshops with relevant stakeholders in order to assess which skills are deficient and a need to beef up through on-the-job training. The domestic market and trading activities tend to fuel demand for illegal timber hence a constraint to the full realization of the VPA objective. The study makes policy suggestions on how to address these implementation challenges.

The political economy of currency internationalisation: the case of the RMB

2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 765-787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randall Germain ◽  
Herman Mark Schwartz
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Adjustment Costs ◽  
Critical Element ◽  
International Currency ◽  
Political Consequences ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Rise Of China ◽  
External Conditions ◽  
The Rise Of China

AbstractThe rise of China has sparked a debate about the economic and political consequences for the global economy of the internationalisation of the renminbi. We argue that the dominant focus of this literature – primarily the external conditions and requirements for a national currency to become an international currency – misspecifies the connections between the international and domestic requirements for currency internationalisation, as well as the potential to become the dominant international reserve currency. We correct this oversight by developing an integrated theoretical framework that highlights the domestic adjustment costs which a state must accommodate before its currency can carry the weight of internationalisation. These costs constitute a critical element of an international currency’s ‘political economy’, and they force states to negotiate contentious social trade-offs among competing domestic claims on finite public resources in a sustainable manner. Our analysis suggests that the likelihood of China being able to successfully negotiate the social costs associated with running a fully internationalised currency is currently very low, precisely because this will place unacceptable pressure on groups benefiting from the economic and political status quo. This further suggests that the American dollar will remain unchallenged as the global economy’s pre-eminent international currency for the foreseeable future.

scholarly journals Potential trade-offs of employing perennial biomass crops for the bioeconomy in the EU by 2050: Impacts on agricultural markets in the EU and the world

GCB Bioenergy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 483-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyung Sik Choi ◽  
Harald Grethe ◽  
Steffen K. Entenmann ◽  
Michael Wiesmeth ◽  
Markus Blesl ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Markets ◽  
Biomass Crops ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The World ◽  
The Eu

scholarly journals Sustainability in the Canadian Egg Industry—Learning from the Past, Navigating the Present, Planning for the Future

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 3524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Pelletier ◽  
Maurice Doyon ◽  
Bruce Muirhead ◽  
Tina Widowski ◽  
Jodey Nurse-Gupta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
The Past ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Face ◽  
Effective Decision Making ◽  
And Shifts ◽  
Societal Expectations ◽  
Management Changes

Like other livestock sectors, the Canadian egg industry has evolved substantially over time and will likely experience similarly significant change looking forward, with many of these changes determining the sustainability implications of and for the industry. Influencing factors include: technological and management changes at farm level and along the value chain resulting in greater production efficiencies and improved life cycle resource efficiency and environmental performance; a changing policy/regulatory environment; and shifts in societal expectations and associated market dynamics, including increased attention to animal welfare outcomes—especially in regard to changes in housing systems for laying hens. In the face of this change, effective decision-making is needed to ensure the sustainability of the Canadian egg industry. Attention both to lessons from the past and to the emerging challenges that will shape its future is required and multi- and interdisciplinary perspectives are needed to understand synergies and potential trade-offs between alternative courses of action across multiple aspects of sustainability. Here, we consider the past, present and potential futures for this industry through the lenses of environmental, institutional (i.e., regulatory), and socio-economic sustainability, with an emphasis on animal welfare as an important emergent social consideration. Our analysis identifies preferred pathways, potential pitfalls, and outstanding cross-disciplinary research questions.

It’s (just) Chemistry, Stupid! Or Not?

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 423-425
Author(s):  
Justo Corti Varela
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Institutional Dynamics ◽  
Eu Legislation ◽  
Risks And Benefits ◽  
Modern Biotechnology ◽  
National Attitudes ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Food Value ◽  
The Eu

This section aims to update readers on decisions related to marketing products of modern biotechnology (e.g., GMOs, animal clones) at EU level and on national measures concerning their production. Special attention is devoted to problems of competence between Member States and the EU in regulating biotechnology issues; the institutional dynamics of decision making regarding products derived frommodern biotechnology; the relationship between the EFSA and the EU institutions on green biotech-related issues; the evolution of EU regulatory framework and of national attitudes towards the risks and benefits of biotechnology derived products and their production. This section will also delve into the interaction between the EU legislation and WTO law regarding advances in the application of biotechnology within the agri–food value chain.

An Assessment of Barbados' Competitiveness within the EU Market 1992-2006

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1850194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Troy Lorde ◽  
Antonio Alleyne ◽  
Brian Francis
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Agricultural Policy ◽  
Market Access ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Rules Of Origin ◽  
History Of ◽  
Economic Partnership ◽  
Partnership Agreement ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

This paper assesses Barbados' competitiveness within the EU market in light of its recent signing of an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the EU in 2008. Using SITC data from 1992-2006, indices of revealed comparative advantage (RCA) were calculated. We found that Barbados possesses comparative advantages in Live Animals; Raw Sugars, Beet and Cane; and Spirits. However, policies such as the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), stringent sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, onerous rules of origin and non-tariff barriers including technical barriers to trade, threaten to undermine these advantages. These developments strongly suggest that Barbados must move agriculture up the value chain and increase value-added, as well as integrate it more fully with other sectors of its economy. Greater attention must be focused on countries in the EU other than the UK, if full advantage is to be taken of the EPA, as the UK market is already mature. There is evidence that export opportunities to these countries exist in other commodity groups (Fuels, Lubricants, etc.; Animal, Vegetable Oils Fats, Wax; Chemicals, Related Products; Manufactured Goods). When these issues are placed within the context of Barbados' history of weak capacity to take advantage of the market access opportunities available from their trading arrangements, the overarching challenge for Barbados is one of effective market access. This will require, among other things, a capable export promotion agency. The export of non-traditional commodities should be promoted, and greater support, perhaps in the form of incentives, should be provided to large firms that are not yet exporters to encourage them to look beyond the domestic market.

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