Long term hydrological change, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation and biomass burning in the tropics

Rapidly rising levels of atmospheric greenhouse gases including carbon dioxide and methane since the industrial revolution have drawn scientific attention to the importance of the global carbon cycle to the climate (Cubasch et al., 2013). Tropical peatlands, the majority of which are located in the Indonesian region, are a major source of uncertainty in the carbon cycle as the relationships between carbon accumulation and hydrological changes remain poorly understood (Hergoualc’h & Verchot, 2011, Page et al., 2011). An important driver of carbon emissions in tropical peatlands is fire, which in the Indonesian region is strongly influenced on interannual timescales by the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). However, it is not clear how ENSO and fire have varied at decadal to centennial scales over the past two millennia. This thesis explores long term tropical hydrological variability and ENSO-like climate change from palaeorecords and their interactions with fire. Using a wide range of instrumental, proxy and model datasets and a novel reconstruction method, two separate reconstructions of long-term ENSO-like climate change are produced based on precipitation and temperature data. These show no evidence of a difference between the ENSO-like behaviour of precipitation and temperature. There is limited evidence for a difference in long-term ENSO-like state between the Medieval Climate Anomaly and the Little Ice Age. Reconstructions of hydrological variability and biomass burning in the Indonesian region suggest that precipitation and fire have been positively correlated over the past 2,000 years, which is contrary to the modern-day relationship on ENSO timescales. This throws up questions of long-term versus short-term interactions and feedbacks between fire, climate and vegetation. It is likely that anthropogenic activity in the Indonesian region has significantly altered the stability of the fire regime. Further research combining proxy data, climate and fire models, and using more robust statistical analysis is necessary to untangle the natural and anthropogenic driving factors at different time resolutions.University of Exeter Climate Change and Sustainable Futures (CCSF

A comparative assessment of building sustainability schemes in Norway

Various schemes are established to evaluate the sustainability of buildings during their life cycle. These schemes introduce a range of evaluation criteria and indicators and are periodically revised to align with current sustainability trends. This study reviews leading schemes in Norway, and compares their scope, similarities, limitations, and advantages. The review is carried out against a proposed office building in Oslo, Norway. The paper evaluates how the schemes comply with the EU taxonomy and Norwegian building regulations. The schemes are assessed through a literature review and interviews with programme operators. Common sustainability criteria are identified and reviewed. In addition, a comparison of how the schemes address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals is conducted. The comparative assessment provides a valuable and practical reference and decision support for project owners in Norway to select the appropriate scheme for their construction project.publishedVersio

En utslippsfri anleggsprosess i Rogaland

Forord Denne rapporten gir et kunnskapsgrunnlag for å stille krav til entreprenører og leverandører for utslippsfrie anleggsplasser i Rogaland og simulere energi- og effektbehov for en planlagt helelektrisk anleggsplass i Rogaland. Videre gis det anbefalinger til energi- og effekt-planlegging av elektriske anleggsplasser og vi har kartlagt energiressursene som er tilgjengelig på og i nærheten av en planlagt helelektrisk anleggsplass i Rogaland. Rapporten er finansiert av Regionale Forskningsfond Rogaland gjennom forprosjektet ut-slippsfri anleggsprosess i Rogaland sammen med RISA, Rental.one og Rogaland fylkes-kommune.publishedVersio

Waste free construction site - A buzzword, nice to have or more

The building and construction industry is responsible for up to 25% of the total waste generated globally. Most construction sites in Norway on average generate 40–60 kg waste per gross floor area built and the average material recovery rate is ca. 46%. Existing requirements focus on waste sorting as a measure to increase material recovery rates. There are on-going national activities with an ambition to achieve waste free construction sites. However, there is lack of a common definition, standard and transparent data collection, and reporting system. This study presents a method for the evaluation and follow-up of construction waste and the associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The methodology was tested using the actual construction waste data collected from 36 Norwegian building cases to evaluate the quantity of construction waste, waste-related GHG emissions per building typology, sorting grade and waste recycling rate. The buildings in total generated ca. 7800 tonnes of waste and ca.12900 tonnes CO2eq and on average ca. 51 kg/m2 waste and 88kgCO2eq/m2. The building projects had a high average sorting grade (89%) and a low average recycling rate (32%). Gypsum, mixed wood, clean wood, and mixed waste are the top waste fractions representing ca. 56% of the total waste volume. This highlights there is still a long way to go to achieve waste free construction sites ambitions. The results also suggest the need for using transparent data collection and communication methods, collaboration in the value chain, stricter regulations, and incentives for encouraging the development of new and existing waste prevention solutions and technologies.publishedVersio

Indikatorer for klimatilpasning av arealer, bygninger og infrastruktur i kommuner. Testing i Trondheim kommune

Denne rapporten oppsummerer resultater i prosjektet Testing av indikatorer for klimatilpasning. Det er Trondheim kommune som har fått støtte fra Miljødirektoratet for å gjennomføre prosjektet. Prosjektet knyttet til seg en sommerstudent og SINTEF har vært forskningspartner. Prosjektet bygger på et rammeverk med indikatorer for klimatilpasning av bygninger og infrastruktur for kommuner, og i dette prosjektet har et utvalg av disse indikatorene blitt testet ut av relevante fagenheter i Trondheim kommune. Basert på erfaringene fra uttestingen ble det gjort en revisjon og oppdatering av rammeverket og foreslått nye indikatorer. Det er videre samlet inn data og beregnet indikatorverdier for de utvalgte indikatorene. Indikatorsettet i denne rapporten er utviklet i tett dialog og samspill med representanter fra klimatilpasningsgruppa i Trondheim kommune. Indikatorene har blitt vurdert etter ulike kriterier for egnethet, deriblant at indikatorene skal ha relevans for andre kommuner. Vi håper at små, mellomstore og store kommuner kan ta dette rammeverket i bruk, for å kunne følge opp og måle effekten av klima-tilpasningsarbeidet som gjøres i kommunen.publishedVersio