Modellering av virkninger på skogsektoren av økt bruk av skogbasert bioenergi i Europa og syd-østlige USA

The European Union (henceforth, EU) is now well on track to meet the 2020 targets for renewable energy production and consumption, and recently a new 2030 Framework for climate and energy has been proposed. The forest sector is supposed to make a significant contribution towards meeting green economy objectives. Moreover, it is of high interest to analyze the potential impacts of EU’s renewable energy directive (RED 1 and the ongoing RED 2) on the forest sector in Europe and overseas. In order to examine global challenges regarding energy, climate change, ecological impacts, technology developments and sustainable use of land and natural resources in the upcoming circular bioeconomy era (EEA 2018), improved analysis tools are required. The utilization of Forest Sector Models (henceforth, FSMs), linking forestry and forest industry activities, has been found useful for assessing the interplay between forest resources and forest commodity markets, accounting for competition and synergies between different uses of wood. This thesis investigates the impacts of increased use of wood-based bioenergy on forest resources and markets of forest and wood products, and explores the strengths and weaknesses of FSMs.Unia Europejska (odtąd UE) jest na dobrej drodze, aby osiągnąć wyznaczone na 2020 rok cele w zakresie produkcji i zużycia energii odnawialnej. Także ostatnio, nowe ramy klimatyczne i energetyczne zostały zaproponowane na rok 2030. Zakłada się, że sektor leśny1 ma znacząco przyczynić się do osiągnięcia celów zielonej gospodarki. Ponadto niezwykle istotne jest przeanalizowanie potencjalnych skutków unijnej dyrektywy w sprawie energii odnawialnej (RED 1 i trwająca RED 2) na sektor leśny w Europie i za granicą. Aby zbadać globalne wyzwania dotyczące energii, zmian klimatu, skutków ekologicznych, rozwoju technologii oraz zrównoważonego użytkowania zasobów lądowych i naturalnych w nadchodzącej erze biogospodarki o obiegu zamkniętym (EEA 2018), potrzebne są ulepszone narzędzia analityczne. Wykorzystanie modeli sektora leśnego (odtąd MSL), łączących działalność w zakresie leśnictwa i przemysłu drzewnego, okazało się przydatne do oceny wzajemnych zależności między zasobami leśnymi a rynkami surowca drzewnego, z uwzględnieniem konkurencji i synergii między różnymi zastosowaniami drewna. Niniejsza praca dotyczy wpływu zwiększonego wykorzystania bioenergii, opartej na drewnie, na zasoby leśne i rynki surowca drzewnego oraz analizuje mocne i słabe strony MSL

The EU Bioeconomy: Supporting an Employment Shift Downstream in the Wood-Based Value Chains?

Monitoring employment in the European wood-based bioeconomy requires reliable, consistent, and comparable statistics across subsectors and over time. Statistics concerning employment in wood-based industries - the main component of the forest-based bioeconomy - must be processed carefully to cope with differences in definitions and estimation methods. In addition, specific methods must be applied to estimate wood-based employment in sectors including also non-wood activities. In this study, we first delineate the boundaries of the wood-based bioeconomy, and then create a harmonised time series on employment for the identified sectors. Finally, we estimate the share of wood-based employment along the value chain in all sectors using wood. According to the results, forestry and extended wood-based value chains employed 4.5 million people in the EU-28 in 2018. Employment in wood-based value chains decreased between 2008 and 2013 in the aftermaths of the financial crisis. Continuously decreasing employment - most apparent in the manufacture of solid wood products and pulp and paper - results from increasing productivity and a decreasing demand for graphic paper. Further, most of the wood-based employment in the EU takes place in downstream parts of value chains, although the weight of the primary sector is still high in some Eastern European countries

Modelling forest sector impacts of increased use of wood-based bioenergy in Europe and US South

The European Union (henceforth, EU) is now well on track to meet the 2020 targets for renewable energy production and consumption, and recently a new 2030 Framework for climate and energy has been proposed. The forest sector is supposed to make a significant contribution towards meeting green economy objectives. Moreover, it is of high interest to analyze the potential impacts of EU’s renewable energy directive (RED 1 and the ongoing RED 2) on the forest sector in Europe and overseas. In order to examine global challenges regarding energy, climate change, ecological impacts, technology developments and sustainable use of land and natural resources in the upcoming circular bioeconomy era (EEA 2018), improved analysis tools are required. The utilization of Forest Sector Models (henceforth, FSMs), linking forestry and forest industry activities, has been found useful for assessing the interplay between forest resources and forest commodity markets, accounting for competition and synergies between different uses of wood. This thesis investigates the impacts of increased use of wood-based bioenergy on forest resources and markets of forest and wood products, and explores the strengths and weaknesses of FSMs

Identification and In Silico Characterization of a Novel COLGALT2 Gene Variant in a Child with Mucosal Rectal Prolapse

Rectal prolapse is influenced by many factors including connective tissue dysfunction. Currently, there is no data about genetic contribution in the etiology of this disorder. In this study, we performed trio whole-exome sequencing in an 11-year-old girl with mucosal rectal prolapse and her parents and sibling. Genetic testing revealed a novel heterozygous missense variant c.1406G>T; p.G469V in exon 11 of the COLGALT2 gene encoding the GLT25 D2 enzyme. Sanger sequencing confirmed this variant only in the patient while the mother, father and sister showed a wild-type sequence. The pathogenicity of the novel variant was predicted using 10 different in silico tools that classified it as pathogenic. Further, in silico prediction, according to Phyre2, Project HOPE, I-Mutant3.0 and MutPred2 showed that the missense variant can decrease protein stability and cause alterations in the physical properties of amino acids resulting in structural and functional changes of the GLT25D2 protein. In conclusion, the present study identifies a previously unknown missense mutation in the COLGALT2 gene that encodes the enzyme involved in collagen glycosylation. The clinical features observed in the patient and the results of in silico analysis suggest that the new genetic variant can be pathogenic

Identification and In Silico Characterization of a Novel <i>COLGALT2</i> Gene Variant in a Child with Mucosal Rectal Prolapse

Rectal prolapse is influenced by many factors including connective tissue dysfunction. Currently, there is no data about genetic contribution in the etiology of this disorder. In this study, we performed trio whole-exome sequencing in an 11-year-old girl with mucosal rectal prolapse and her parents and sibling. Genetic testing revealed a novel heterozygous missense variant c.1406G>T; p.G469V in exon 11 of the COLGALT2 gene encoding the GLT25 D2 enzyme. Sanger sequencing confirmed this variant only in the patient while the mother, father and sister showed a wild-type sequence. The pathogenicity of the novel variant was predicted using 10 different in silico tools that classified it as pathogenic. Further, in silico prediction, according to Phyre2, Project HOPE, I-Mutant3.0 and MutPred2 showed that the missense variant can decrease protein stability and cause alterations in the physical properties of amino acids resulting in structural and functional changes of the GLT25D2 protein. In conclusion, the present study identifies a previously unknown missense mutation in the COLGALT2 gene that encodes the enzyme involved in collagen glycosylation. The clinical features observed in the patient and the results of in silico analysis suggest that the new genetic variant can be pathogenic