22 research outputs found
Reducing Fuel Volatility - An Additional Benefit From Blending Bio-fuels?
Oil price volatility harms economic growth. Diversifying into different fuel types can mitigate this effect by reducing volatility in fuel prices. Producing bio-fuels may thus have additional benefits in terms of avoided damage to macro-economic growth. In this study we investigate trends and patterns in the determinants of a volatility gain in order to provide an estimate of the tendency and the size of the volatility gain in the future. The accumulated avoided loss from blending gasoline with 20 percent ethanol-fuel estimated for the US economy amounts to 795 bn. USD between 2010 and 2019 with growing tendency. An amount that should be considered in cost-benefit analysis of bio-fuels.
Integrated policy assessment and optimisation over multiple sustainable development goals in Eastern Africa
Heavy reliance on traditional biomass for household energy in eastern Africa has significant negative health and environmental impacts. The African context for energy access is rather different from historical experiences elsewhere as challenges in achieving energy access have coincided with major climate ambitions. Policies focusing on household energy needs in eastern Africa contribute to at least three sustainable development goals (SDGs): climate action, good health, and improved energy access. This study uses an integrated assessment model to simulate the impact of land policies and technology subsidies, as well as the interaction of both, on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, exposure to air pollution and energy access in eastern Africa under a range of socioeconomic pathways. We find that land policies focusing on increasing the sustainable output of biomass resources can reduce GHG emissions in the region by about 10%, but also slightly delay progress in health and energy access goals. An optimised portfolio of energy technology subsidies consistent with a global Green Climate Funds budget of 30-35 billion dollar, can yield another 10% savings in GHG emissions, while decreasing mortality related to air pollution by 20%, and improving energy access by up to 15%. After 2030, both land and technology policies become less effective, and more dependent on the overall development path of the region. The analysis shows that support for biogas technology should be prioritised in both the short and long term, while financing liquefied petroleum gas and ethanol technologies also has synergetic climate, health and energy access benefits. Instead, financing PV technologies is mostly relevant for improving energy access, while charcoal and to a lesser extend fuelwood technologies are relevant for curbing GHG emissions if their finance is linked to land policies. We suggest that integrated policy analysis is needed in the African context for simultaneously reaching progress in multiple SDGs.The authors thank Francesco Dalla Longa for his comments, and Brennan Bowman and Sebastien Huclin for their help with regard to data and methodology. This research is supported by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under Grant Agreements No. 642260 (TRANSrisk project) and No. 820846 (Paris Reinforce), and by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO through BC3 Maria de Maeztu excellence accreditation MDM-2017-0714. Dirk-Jan van de Ven and Jon Sampedro acknowledge financial support from the Ministry of the Economy and Competitiveness of Spain (ECO2015-68023). Jon Sampedro also acknowledges financial support from the Basque Government (PRE_2018_2_0076). Sha Yu was supported by the Global Technology Strategy Project (GTSP). The views and opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors alone
Fuel from the Savannah: Understanding the Climate Change Impacts of Large-Scale Charcoal Production in Kenya
Kenya consumes 4-7 thousand tons of charcoal per day. Much of Kenya’s charcoal comes from shrubland or savannah. After harvest, this land may be allowed to regenerate, but increasingly charcoal is used as a means to clear land for crop cultivation. This is particularly true in Narok District, one of Kenya’s main charcoal production areas and an increasingly important grain production zone. Land management specifically for charcoal is extremely rare. Charcoal production and use is associated with high greenhouse gas emissions relative to other common energy options. However, there have been few attempts to analyze the land-use change implications associated with different charcoal production systems, This paper uses computer modeling parameterized with empirical data to analyze the carbon dynamics of current charcoal production practices, including changes in stocks of soil and biomass carbon resulting from land cover change linked to charcoal production. On a life cycle basis, the common practice of charcoal production followed by grain cultivation leads to a loss of 40 tC per ha (2.7 tC per ton of charcoal produced). Charcoal production by coppice management of native vegetation releases 3-9 tC per ha over 50 years of management (0.08-0.3 tC per ton of charcoal produced). Charcoal production using a fast growing exotic species (eucalyptus grandis) managed on a 10-year coppice managed cycle results in a net sink of 150 tC per ha (0.5-0.8 tC sequestered per ton of charcoal produced). These results are compared to life cycle emissions from other common household fuels and policy implications are discussed
Environmental Implications of Jatropha Biofuel from a Silvi-Pastoral Production System in Central-West Brazil
We present a life cycle assessment
of synthetic paraffinic kerosene
produced from Jatropha curcas. The feedstock is grown in an intercropping
arrangement with pasture grasses so that Jatropha is coproduced with
cattle. Additional innovations are introduced including hybrid seeds,
detoxification of jatropha seedcake, and cogeneration. Two fuel pathways
are examined including a newly developed catalytic decarboxylation
process. Sensitivities are examined including higher planting density
at the expense of cattle production as well as 50% lower yields. Intercropping
with pasture and detoxifying seedcake yield coproducts that are expected
to relieve pressure on Brazil’s forests and indirectly reduce
environmental impacts of biofuel production. Other innovations also
reduce impacts. Results of the baseline assessment indicate that innovations
would reduce impacts relative to the fossil fuel reference scenario
in most categories including 62–75% reduction in greenhouse
gas emissions, 64–82% reduction in release of ozone depleting
chemicals, 33–52% reduction in smog-forming pollutants, 6–25%
reduction in acidification, and 60–72% reduction in use of
nonrenewable energy. System expansion, which explicitly accounts for
avoided deforestation, results in larger improvements. Results are
robust across allocation methodologies, improve with higher planting
density, and persist if yield is reduced by half
Enhancing clean cooking options in peri-urban Kenya: a pilot study of advanced gasifier stove adoption
Kenya has experienced a decade of relative prosperity with consistent economic growth and minimal political tension. GDP is growing by 3% annually and poverty rates are declining. Despite these gains, Kenya still has a lot of ground to cover to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. SDG7, which aims to ‘Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all’, exemplifies both Kenya’s achievements and the challenges that remain. Access to grid-based electricity and LPG have grown rapidly. However, over 90% of Kenyans still rely on polluting fuels like wood, charcoal and/or kerosene for some or all of their cooking needs. Substantial effort is needed to ensure all Kenyans have access to clean cooking options by 2030. We present the results of a pilot study in which gasifier-based pellet stoves were introduced in 150 peri-urban households. The stoves include an internal fan that improves combustion efficiency and reduces emissions by 90%–99% relative to charcoal and fuelwood in traditional devices. A subset of participants received stoves with ‘Pay-as-You-Cook’ (PAYC) hardware, which relies on pre-paid RFID card to activate the stove’s internal fan, allowing vendors to sell the stove below cost and recoup losses through pellet sales. We find that people were willing to include pellet stoves in their cooking routines and, in many cases, pellets displaced polluting fuels. We also find that PAYC hardware did not negatively impact adoption: PAYC users had higher daily rates of fuel consumption and reported higher willingness to pay for the stove than non-PAYC users. However, stoves were not used exclusively. Instead, people stacked pellets in combination with other cooking options, with pellets contributing to 12%–40% of their cooking needs (inter-quartile range). Though the project did not successfully overcome all of the barriers necessary to achieve long-term adoption of advanced pellet stoves, the results demonstrate that pellets could contribute to a portfolio of cleaner options. Social media abstract: In a pilot project, clean-burning ‘pay-as-you-cook’ pellet stoves were stacked with LPG and polluting fuels
A Global Synthesis of Jatropha Cultivation: Insights into Land Use Change and Management Practices
Despite
setbacks, interest in Jatropha cultivation remains high.
This study addressed the question to what extent Jatropha cultivation
has replaced specific vegetation and land use types and how the existing
areas are managed. Major forms of land use change and management practices
were identified based on cluster analysis of data from 106 interviewee’s
responses to a comprehensive global survey. Of the 1.04 × 10<sup>6</sup> ha cultivated with Jatropha in 2011 40% were established
on land that was cleared of vegetation as a result of logging activities
unrelated to Jatropha cultivation, 34% was defined as unused, and
the remainder was attributable to areas previously used for crops
or animal husbandry. With the exception of croplands, these areas
were dominated (90–98%) by a few internationally active companies
whose cultivation models were almost exclusively based on outgrower
schemes. Management practices were largely extensive in nature (low
mechanical input and infrequent use of fertilizers, pesticides and
herbicides), and also dominated by large projects. Broad surveys,
such as this, are useful in identifying general trends in this emerging
global industry, but detailed case studies, particularly of large
projects, are needed in order to draw more informed conclusions about
the site-specific impacts of Jatropha cultivation