Sustainability of meat production beyond carbon footprint: a synthesis of case studies from grazing systems in Uruguay

Livestock production has been challenged as a large contributor to climate change, and carbon footprint has become a widely used measure of cattle environmental impact. This analysis of fifteen beef grazing systems in Uruguay quantifies the range of variation of carbon footprint, and the trade-offs with other relevant environmental variables, using a partial life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. Using carbon footprint as the primary environmental indicator has several limitations: different metrics (GWP vs. GTP) may lead to different conclusions, carbon sequestration from soils may drastically affect the results, and systems with lower carbon footprint may have higher energy use, soil erosion, nutrient imbalance, pesticide ecotoxicity, and impact on biodiversity. A multidimensional assessment of sustainability of meat production is therefore needed to inform decision makers. There is great potential to improve grazing livestock systems productivity while reducing carbon footprint and other environmental impacts, and conserving biodiversity.     

Peer reviewed: finding solutions for tough environmental problems

At the frontiers of research, environmental engineers are using novel tools to obtain knowledge about complex environmental systems.     

造纸废水治理工艺的生态效益计算方法探讨

采用Steen描述的方法,即由生命周期费用(LCC)与生命周期评价(LCA)的比率(LCC/LCA)计算企业生态效益,结合LCC分析及LCA的技术方法,参照GUY SKANTZE、Steen教授等的实例研究,应用德国GaBi软件,统计计算了苏州某造纸企业引进超滤设备前后新旧两条废水处理工艺系统的生态效益。结果显示,两套生产工艺的生态效益分别为:上超滤前90.18%,上超滤后92.47%。由此可见,超滤设备能够降低造纸废水治理工艺对环境的影响,减少环境负荷。研究涉及的生态效益计算方法,不但可以判断不同工艺对环境影响的优劣,还可以用其评价不同产品或服务甚至不同企业对环境影响的相对优劣。     

The simulated environmental impact of incorporating white clover into pasture-based dairy production systems

White clover (WC) offers an alternative source of nitrogen (N) for pasture-based systems. Substituting energy- and carbon-intensive synthetic N fertilizers with N derived from biological fixation by WC has been highlighted as a promising environmental mitigation strategy through the omission of emissions, pollutants, and energy usage during the production and application of synthetic fertilizer. Therefore, the objective was to investigate the effect of the inclusion of WC in perennial ryegrass (PRG) swards on the environmental impact of pasture-based dairy systems. Cradle-to-farm gate life cycle assessment of 3 pasture-based dairy systems were conducted: (1) a PRG–WC sward receiving 150 kg of N/ha per year (CL150), (2) a PRG–WC sward receiving 250 kg of N/ha per year (CL250), and (3) a PRG-only sward receiving 250 kg of N/ha per year (GR250). A dairy environmental model was updated with country-specific N excretion equations and recently developed N₂O, NH₃, and NO₃^? emission factors. The environmental impact categories assessed were global warming potential, nonrenewable energy, acidification potential, and eutrophication potential (marine and freshwater). Impact categories were expressed using 2 functional units: per hectare and per metric tonne of fat- and protein-corrected milk. The GR250 system had the lowest milk production and highest global warming potential, nonrenewable energy, and acidification potential per tonne of fat- and protein-corrected milk for all systems. The CL250 system produced the most milk and had the highest environmental impact across all categories when expressed on an area basis. It also had the highest marine eutrophication potential for both functional units. The impact category freshwater eutrophication potential did not differ across the 3 systems. The CL150 system had the lowest environmental impact across all categories and functional units. This life cycle assessment study demonstrates that the substitution of synthetic N fertilizer with atmospheric N fixed by WC has potential to reduce the environmental impact of intensive pasture-based dairy systems in temperate regions, not only through improvement in animal performance but also through the reduction in total emissions and pollutants contributing to the environmental indicators assessed.     

Assessing sustainability in real urban systems: the greater cincinnati metropolitan area in ohio, kentucky, and indiana

Urban systems have a number of factors (i.e., economic, social, and environmental) that can potentially impact growth, change, and transition. As such, assessing and managing these systems is a complex challenge. While, tracking trends of key variables may provide some insight, identifying the critical characteristics that truly impact the dynamic behavior of these systems is difficult. As an integrated approach to evaluate real urban systems, this work contributes to the research on scientific techniques for assessing sustainability. Specifically, it proposes a practical methodology based on the estimation of dynamic order, for identifying stable and unstable periods of sustainable or unsustainable trends with Fisher Information (FI) metric. As a test case, the dynamic behavior of the City, Suburbs, and Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) of Cincinnati was evaluated by using 29 social and 11 economic variables to characterize each system from 1970 to 2009. Air quality variables were also selected to describe the MSA's environmental component (1980-2009). Results indicate systems dynamic started to change from about 1995 for the social variables and about 2000 for the economic and environmental characteristics.     

Environmental Impact of Meat Industry – Current Status and Future Perspectives

This paper gives an overview of the environmental impact of the meat chain. This industry has a significant impact on the environment and current scientific research outlines three main perspectives – product-based using life cycle assessment as a tool; process-based exploring the main environmental aspects and; systems–based, analyzing the rationale for environmental management. Environmental impacts influence three dimensions – climate change, consumption of natural resources and environmental pollution. Future research should focus on environmental impacts of the meat chain expressed in terms of existing and newly developed environmental indicators and identifying solutions for decreasing the overall environmental impact.     

Environmental applications of carbon-based nanomaterials

The unique and tunable properties of carbon-based nanomaterials enable new technologies for identifying and addressing environmental challenges. This review critically assesses the contributions of carbon-based nanomaterials to a broad range of environmental applications: sorbents, high-flux membranes, depth filters, antimicrobial agents, environmental sensors, renewable energy technologies, and pollution prevention strategies. In linking technological advance back to the physical, chemical, and electronic properties of carbonaceous nanomaterials, this article also outlines future opportunities for nanomaterial application in environmental systems.     

Environmental GIS: The World in a Computer

Expanding data resources are spurring widespread use of geographic information systems in the environmental field.     

Environmental impacts of algae-derived biodiesel and bioelectricity for transportation

Algae are a widely touted source of bioenergy with high yields, appreciable lipid contents, and an ability to be cultivated on marginal land without directly competing with food crops. Nevertheless, recent work has suggested that large-scale deployment of algae bioenergy systems could have unexpectedly high environmental burdens. In this study, a "well-to-wheel" life cycle assessment was undertaken to evaluate algae's potential use as a transportation energy source for passenger vehicles. Four algae conversion pathways resulting in combinations of bioelectricity and biodiesel were assessed for several relevant nutrient procurement scenarios. Results suggest that algae-to-energy systems can be either net energy positive or negative depending on the specific combination of cultivation and conversion processes used. Conversion pathways involving direct combustion for bioelectricity production generally outperformed systems involving anaerobic digestion and biodiesel production, and they were found to generate four and fifteen times as many vehicle kilometers traveled (VKT) per hectare as switchgrass or canola, respectively. Despite this, algae systems exhibited mixed performance for environmental impacts (energy use, water use, and greenhouse gas emissions) on a "per km" basis relative to the benchmark crops. This suggests that both cultivation and conversion processes must be carefully considered to ensure the environmental viability of algae-to-energy processes.     

关于协同推进排污许可制与环境保护税的思考

党的十九届四中全会明确了构建以排污许可制管理制度为核心的内容,以促进环境污染源监督管理体制的发展.这为排污许可证制度和各类环保管理体系相融合、为各项法律管理体系的统一协调明确了方向.本文在全面分析排污许可制和环境保护税现状、存在的新挑战基础上,从健全规章制度系统、构建协同激励机制、统一核算复核体系及大数据共享体系四大方面,阐述了排污许可制和环保税协调衔接工作相互协同的机制,使排污许可制和环保税在协同推进过程中充分发挥出最大效率;使企事业单位明确合理的污染物排放控制要求与预期,促进企业确立公正规范的环保执法规则与秩序,进一步降低企业污染物的排放量,提高企业的环境质量,并进一步完善绿色管理制度,促使企业形成人、自然与社会和谐发展的现代化建设新布局.     

A taxing environment: evaluating the multiple objectives of environmental taxes

Environmental taxes have attracted attention in recent years as a tool to internalize environmental externalities. This paper evaluates Sweden's experience with environmental taxes in the energy sector by examining how environmental taxes compare with estimated environmental externalities associated with the use of oil, coal, natural gas, and forest residue fuels. We also analyze how environmental taxes influence fuel choices in the energy sector by comparing the production, environmental, and tax costs for the same fuels. We find that (i) the Swedish environmental taxes correspond imperfectly with environmental costs; (ii) the Swedish tax and subsidy system introduces changes in fuel choice decisions; (iii) the energy users are responding to the incentives created by the tax and subsidy systems in ways that are consistent with economic theory; and (iv) the Swedish experience with environmental taxes and subsidies bears directly on wider evaluations of energy policy approaches internationally.     

树立科学的发展观,大力推进皮革工业环境建设

通过中国皮革工业的发展进程和环境状况 ,提出了必须树立科学的发展观 ,深入开展皮革工业的环境建设 ,同时必须树立正确的国情观、资源观、效益观、法制观 ,从而推动皮革工业可持续发展战略的落实     

环境监测在生态环境保护中的作用及发展措施研究

环境监测作业作为生态环境保护工作的重点核心内容,主要目的是为广大人民群众提供一个优秀的生存环境,同时还可以为社会经济的可持续发展奠定良好的基础.如果不能采取科学合理的措施优化环境保护工作,就会对广大人民群众的日常生活造成不良影响.因此,从事环境保护工作的相关人员应重视自身的职责,了解并掌握环境监测工作在生态环境保护中的...     

Environmental, social, and economic implications of global reuse and recycling of personal computers

Reverse supply chains for the reuse, recycling, and disposal of goods are globalizing. This article critically reviews the environmental, economic, and social issues associated with international reuse and recycling of personal computers. Computers and other e-waste are often exported for reuse and recycling abroad. On the environmental side, our analysis suggests that the risk of leaching of toxic materials in computers from well-managed sanitary landfills is very small. On the other hand, there is an increasing body of scientific evidence that the environmental impacts of informal recycling in developing countries are serious. On the basis of existing evidence informal recycling is the most pressing environmental issue associated with e-waste. Socially, used markets abroad improve access to information technology by making low-priced computers available. Economically, the reuse and recycling sector provides employment. Existing policies efforts to manage e-waste focus on mandating domestic recycling systems and reducing toxic content of processes. We argue that existing policy directions will mitigate but not solve the problem of the environmental impacts of informal recycling. There are many opportunities yet to be explored to develop policies and technologies for reuse/recycling systems which are environmentally safe, encourage reuse of computers, and provide jobs.     

The coming of age of agroforestry

The success of modern agricultural and forestry production can be largely attributed to monoculture systems using a few select species. In the drive for maximizing yield and profit, the age‐old tradition of using combined farming systems was essentially avoided and in some cases this has resulted in environmental problems such as land and water degradation and increased land clearing. During the last 30 years, however, the positive benefits of agroforestry to the producer and the environment have been increasingly recognized. Combining trees and crops in spatial or temporal arrangements has been shown to improve food and nutritional security and mitigate environmental degradation, offering a sustainable alternative to monoculture production. By providing supportive and complimentary roles with a flexible approach, agroforestry can offer specific social and environmental benefits across a range of landscapes and economies. More research and effort is needed to explore the full potential of agroforestry applications and to fuel awareness. As the plethora of benefits of agroforestry are realized, modern land‐use systems are evolving towards a more sustainable and holistic approach to land management. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry     

生物柴油化学制备方法

生物柴油是一种对环境友好可再生燃料,对解决日益枯竭石油资源和由石化柴油燃烧而带来环境问题有重要意义。该文对目前制备生物柴油几种化学方法:均相催化法、非均相催化法、生物催化法和超临界法进行比较,并认为超临界法对原料要求低,且在生产工艺、生产周期和生产成本方面都比其它方法具有一定优越性。     

完全无菌包装

<正> 完全无菌型包装,顾名思意,就是从成型、灌装,以至到封口的每个步骤,均以无菌的方式将产品包装起来,所包装的产品范围广泛,例如冰淇淋、乳酪制品、奶油、酱料、沙拉、果汁等等。 首先,在确保包装材料的卫生方面,机械会将制作包装杯子用的塑料材料和盖子,浸没在过氧化氢的槽中以进行灭菌处理,从而保证了产品是灌装到无菌的包装物中。而机械中残留的过氧     

Informative and corrective responsive packaging: Advances in farm-to-fork monitoring and remediation of food quality and safety

Microbial growth and fluctuations in environmental conditions have been shown to cause microbial contamination and deterioration of food. Thus, it is paramount to develop reliable strategies to effectively prevent the sale and consumption of contaminated or spoiled food. Responsive packaging systems are designed to react to specific stimuli in the food or environment, such as microorganisms or temperature, then implement an informational or corrective response. Informative responsive packaging is aimed at continuously monitoring the changes in food or environmental conditions and conveys this information to the users in real time. Meanwhile, packaging systems with the capacity to control contamination or deterioration are also of great interest. Encouragingly, corrective responsive packaging attempting to mitigate the adverse effects of condition fluctuations on food has been investigated. This packaging exerts its effects through the triggered release of active agents by environmental stimuli. In this review, informative and corrective responsive packaging is conceptualized clearly and concisely. The mechanism and characteristics of each type of packaging are discussed in depth. This review also summarized the latest research progress of responsive packaging and objectively appraised their advantages. Evidently, the mechanism through which packaging systems respond to microbial contamination and associated environmental factors was also highlighted. Moreover, risk concerns, related legislation, and consumer perspective in the application of responsive packaging are discussed as well. Broadly, this comprehensive review covering the latest information on responsive packaging aims to provide a timely reference for scientific research and offer guidance for presenting their applications in food industry.     

Environmental implications of food loss probability in packaging design

In this paper, a new perspective of food packaging design is proposed by using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach, in which shelf life and food loss probability were taken into account. The study focused on twenty-four scenarios of packaging of a ripened cheese obtained from sheep milk, in order to analyze the environmental implications of different packaging systems in terms of potential food loss. The aim is to provide an eco-indicator able to quantify the environmental indirect effects related to the different choices in the food packaging. Results highlighted that, by considering only the direct inputs and outputs of the packaging system, thinner and recyclable packaging materials sealed in air are more sustainable from an environmental point of view. On the contrary, if indirect effects of food loss probability are also taken into account (e.g. production and transport of cheese in order to reconstruct the stockpile), multilayer systems under modified headspace conditions are preferred packaging solutions. This is consequence of the fact that cheese production brings about high environmental impacts if compared to the other phases of the life cycle, therefore, the environmental implications of the choices adopted for the packaging phase are more affected from the capacity of reducing food losses than from the production and disposing of packaging materials.     

Life cycle investigation of CO2 recovery and sequestration

The Life Cycle Assessment of four CO2 recoverytechnologies, combined with nine CO2 sequestration systems, serves to expand the debate of CO2 mitigation methods beyond a single issue-prevention of global warming-to a wider range of environmental concerns: resource depletion, acidic and toxic gases, wastes, etc, so that the overall, and unexpected, environmental impacts may be revealed.