Logistic regression of some risk factors underlying the outbreak of streptococcusis in rainbow trout (Onchorhynchus mykiss) farms in Haraz River, Mazandaran Province, Iran

Streptococcusis is the one of the most important bacterial fish diseases with outbreak in rainbow trout farms in Iran. The fish farmers have been largely suffered from huge economic losses due to the Streptococcusis outbreaks in different rainbow trout farms in Iran. The present study assessed the effects of some environmental risk factors on incidence of streptococcusis in rainbow trout farms in Haraz River in Mazandaran Province, Iran. A suit of environmental factors including water temperature, nitrite, nitrate, ammonium, water turbidity, DO, water Debi and total count of bacteria were explored as influential factors. Fish and water samples were randomly collected from 10 farm on a monthly basis throughout a year. Isolation and recognition of strep strains were made using biochemical and PCR tests and the data were analyzed by logistic regression method. According to the results, 20% of the differences were explained by the logistic model. Management of these factors might decline the rate of disease outbreak

Assessment of global wave models on regular and unstructured grids using the Unresolved Obstacles Source Term

The Unresolved Obstacles Source Term (UOST) is a general methodology for parameterizing the dissipative effects of subscale islands, cliffs, and other unresolved features in ocean wave models. Since it separates the dissipation from the energy advection scheme, it can be applied to any numerical scheme or any type of mesh. UOST is now part of the official release of WAVEWATCH III, and the freely available packagealphaBetaLabautomates the estimation of the parameters needed for the obstructed cells. In this contribution, an assessment of global regular and unstructured (triangular) wave models employing UOST is presented. The results in regular meshes show an improvement in model skill, both in terms of spectrum and of integrated parameters, thanks to the UOST modulation of the dissipation with wave direction, and to considering the cell geometry. The improvement is clear in wide areas characterized by the presence of islands, like the whole central-western Pacific Basin. In unstructured meshes, the use of UOST removes the need of high resolution in proximity of all small features, leading to (a) a simplification in the development process of large scale and global meshes, and (b) a significant decrease of the computational demand of accurate large-scale models

Institutionalizing New Civic Learning Traditions: Nurturing design practice in planning cultures

Design professionals working on civic design initiatives are aware of the current trend to democratise civic think tanks. These think tanks have been taking form under the name “social labs” (Hassan, 2014), “urban labs” (Scholl et al., 2017), and even “sidewalk labs” as advanced by Google (Mondon, 2015). Without the explicit commitment to an identifiable design process, street-level think tanks risk devolving into familiar planning exercises. There are multiple forces acting to resist initiating, sustaining and expanding design dialogues in the public sphere. Only by recognising these challenges can the governance of representative decision-making be genuinely and effectively enabled with inclusive alternative designs for our decision-makers

Building energy renovation for decarbonisation and Covid-19 recovery: A snapshot at regional level

Our society and economy are changing as our lifestyles shift in a world recovering from Covid-19. While the governments are working to face this challenge, new local and regional instances stand out. A sustainable recovery throughout Europe calls for a reduction of the existing gaps between regions. Energy efficiency qualifies as one of the sectors with a greater potential for the double dividend hypothesis, thus supporting economic recovery and decarbonisation simultaneously. Although recent years have witnessed the introduction of various regulatory mechanisms and incentives for efficiency, the energy saving potential of the European building stock is still very high, especially in the residential sector. To activate it, a thirty-year planning and short-term shock measures are required to unlock the efficiency process. This report provides a snapshot of the European building stock at local level, and identifies the most critical regions, taking into account buildings age, climatic conditions, some structural barriers and key economic indicators. Based on this information, we calculated the energy saving potential of extensive renovation of residential buildings, as well as the associated investment needs and the impact on employment. These indications and datasets can guide decision-makers in the definition of fine-tuned programmes for the refurbishment of existing buildings at European and national level.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable

Ecosystem services accounting - Part II Pilot accounts for crop and timber provision, global climate regulation and flood control

The Knowledge Innovation Project on an Integrated system of Natural Capital and ecosystem services Accounting (KIP INCA) aims to develop a set of experimental accounts at the EU level, following the United Nations System of Environmental-Economic Accounting - Experimental Ecosystem Accounts (SEEA EEA). The application of the SEEA EEA framework is useful to illustrate ecosystem accounts with clear examples, to further develop the methodology outlined in the United Nations Technical Recommendations, and to give guidance for Natural Capital Accounting. This report assesses and accounts for four ecosystem services (ES): crop provision, timber provision, global climate regulation, and flood control. The methodology applied for the accounts of each ecosystem service depends on the nature of the service and on data availability. Crop provision account is based on official statistics on yield production. Here, we combine yield statistics with a novel approach to disentangle the yield generated by the ecosystem from what is generated by the human inputs (i.e., planting, irrigation, chemical products). Timber provision account follows a similar rationale, but the data to assess the ecosystem contribution is derived from economic aggregates. The global climate regulation account uses carbon sequestration as a proxy. The account is built on the ecosystem CO2 uptake reported in the Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) inventories at country level. Copernicus data (Dry Matter Productivity) have been also used to map CO2 uptake by forest (the only ecosystem type acting across countries and over time, as reported in LULUCF inventories). Maps of CO2 uptake are useful to make comparisons with other ecosystem services in a later stage of the project, in particular to assess synergies and trade-offs. Complementarily, we also provide a thematic account for soil organic carbon based on data from Land Use/Cover Area frame Survey (LUCAS). However, this information is considered as an asset account in physical terms because it quantifies organic carbon stocks into the soil, and not flows. The valuation method used for crop and timber provision is based on market values and for global climate regulation is a proxy of market values. The account of flood control by ecosystems is the only service in this report based on biophysical modelling. Different components of the ecosystem service have been quantified: ES potential, ES demand, actual flow (or service use), and unmet demand. The actual flow, quantified as the hectares of demand benefiting from ecosystems in a given year, is also translated into monetary terms using as valuation technique the avoided damage cost. Results of the accounts at the EU level for the first period assessed (year 2000-2006) show a decrease of the monetary value of the services for crop (-5%) and timber provision (-2%), and a very slight increase for global climate regulation (+0.4%). The account for flood control was not available for the first period because of the lack of data, which is a limiting factor for a regularly updated ecosystem service account. In contrast, for the second period assessed (year 2006-2012), all four service show an increase in their monetary value: +34% for crop provision, +2% for timber provision, and +1.3% for global climate regulation and +1.14% for flood control. The use of spatially explicit models for the account of flood control provides very useful information to understand the drivers of changes in the value of this service. The increase of artificial areas benefiting from ecosystems controlling floods increases the value of flood control by ecosystems; however, its value per unit of economic asset decreases. This, together with an increase of the demand not covered by the ecosystem for artificial areas (i.e., unmet demand), show that there is a negative trend in the role of natural capital covering the need for flood control in these areas. So far, six ecosystem service accounts have been developed: crop and timber provision, crop pollination, global climate regulation, flood control and nature-based recreation. The supply table at the EU level for all these six ecosystem services in 2012 shows woodland and forest as the ecosystem type with the highest absolute (~70 billion euro) and relative values (~44 thousand euro/km2). In absolute terms, cropland appears as the second most important ecosystem given its large extent at the EU level; however, when it comes to relative values (value per square kilometre) cropland is among the ecosystem services with the lowest value. Complementary, the use table shows households, followed by the agriculture sector, as the main beneficiaries of these ecosystem services; receiving an annual monetary flow of about ~62 billion euro and ~25 billion euro, respectively. The experimental accounts shown for these ecosystem services, in a consistent way with the SEEA EEA, are useful to further develop the methodology applied for ecosystem services accounts. We also discuss about the advantaged and disadvantaged of the different data sources and methods used. Future releases of pilot ecosystem services accounts will include water purification, habitat maintenance and soil erosion control. The final integrated assessment will be carried out at the end of the KIP INCA project, when a more comprehensive list of ecosystem services become available. The integration of ecosystem services accounts will be useful to make trade-offs in decision making more transparent, inform efficient use of resources, enhance resilience and sustainability, and avoid unintended negative consequences of policy actions.JRC.D.3-Land Resource

The Integrated system for Natural Capital Accounting (INCA) in Europe: twelve lessons learned from empirical ecosystem service accounting

Open Access Article; Published online: 16 Sep 2022The Integrated system for Natural Capital Accounting (INCA) was developed and supported by the European Commission to test and implement the System of integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting – Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EA). Through the compilation of nine Ecosystem Services (ES) accounts, INCA can make available to any interested ecosystem accountant a number of lessons learned. Amongst the conceptual lessons learned, we can mention: (i) for accounting purposes, ES should be clustered according to the existence (or not) of a sustainability threshold; (ii) the assessment of ES flow results from the interaction of an ES potential and an ES demand; (iii) the ES demand can be spatially identified, but for an overarching environmental target, this is not possible; ES potential and ES demand could mis-match; (iv) because the demand remains unsatisfied; (v) because the ES is used above its sustainability threshold or (vi) because part of the potential flow is missed; (vii) there can be a cause-and-effect relationship between ecosystem condition and ES flow; (viii) ES accounts can complement the SEEA Central Framework accounts without overlapping or double counting. Amongst the methodological lessons learned, we can mention: (ix) already exiting ES assessments do not directly provide ES accounts, but will likely need some additional processing; (x) ES cannot be defined by default as intermediate; (xi) the ES remaining within ecosystems cannot be reported as final; (xii) the assessment and accounting of ES can be undertaken throughout a fast track approach or more demanding modelling procedures

Mapping and Assessment of Ecosystems and their Services: An EU ecosystem assessment

This report presents an ecosystem assessment covering the total land area of the EU as well as the EU marine regions. The assessment is carried out by Joint Research Centre, European Environment Agency, DG Environment, and the European Topic Centres on Biological Diversity and on Urban, Land and Soil Systems. This report constitutes a knowledge base which can support the evaluation of the 2020 biodiversity targets. It also provides a data foundation for future assessments and policy developments, in particular with respect to the ecosystem restoration agenda for the next decade (2020-2030). The report presents an analysis of the pressures and condition of terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems using a single, comparable methodology based on European data on trends of pressures and condition relative to the policy baseline 2010. The following main conclusions are drawn: - Pressures on ecosystems exhibit different trends. - Land take, atmospheric emissions of air pollutants and critical loads of nitrogen are decreasing but the absolute values of all these pressures remain too high. - Impacts from climate change on ecosystems are increasing. - Invasive alien species of union concern are observed in all ecosystems, but their impact is particularly high in urban ecosystems and grasslands. - Pressures from overfishing activities and marine pollution are still high. - In the long term, air and freshwater quality is improving. - In forests and agroecosystems, which represent over 80% of the EU territory, there are improvements in structural condition indicators (biomass, deadwood, area under organic farming) relative to the baseline year 2010 but some key bio-indicators such as tree-crown defoliation continue to increase. This indicates that ecosystem condition is not improving. - Species-related indicators show no progress or further declines, particularly in agroecosystems. The analysis of trends in ecosystem services concluded that the current potential of ecosystems to deliver timber, protection against floods, crop pollination, and nature-based recreation is equal to or lower than the baseline value for 2010. At the same time, the demand for these services has significantly increased. A lowered potential in combination with a higher demand risks to further decrease the condition of ecosystems and their contribution to human well-being. Despite the wide coverage of environmental legislation in the EU, there are still large gaps in the legal protection of ecosystems. On land, 76% of the area of terrestrial ecosystems, mainly forests, agroecosystems and urban ecosystems, are excluded from a legal designation under the Bird and Habitat Directives. Freshwater and marine ecosystems are subject to specific protection measures under the Water Framework and Marine Strategy Framework Directives. The condition of ecosystems that are under legal designation is unfavourable. More efforts are needed to bend the curve of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation and to put ecosystems on a path to recovery. The progress that is made in certain areas such as pollution reduction, increasing air and water quality, increasing share of organic farming, the expansion of forests, and the efforts to maintain marine fish stocks at sustainable levels show that a persistent implementation of policies can be effective. These successes should encourage us to act now and to put forward an ambitious plan for the restoration of Europe’s ecosystems.JRC.D.3-Land Resource

The Role of Direct Air Capture in EU’s Decarbonisation and Associated Carbon Intensity for Synthetic Fuels Production

Direct air capture (DAC) is considered one of the mitigation strategies in most of the future scenarios trying to limit global temperature to 1.5 °C. Given the high expectations placed on DAC for future decarbonisation, this study presents an extensive review of DAC technologies, exploring a number of techno-economic aspects, including an updated collection of the current and planned DAC projects around the world. A dedicated analysis focused on the production of synthetic methane, methanol, and diesel from DAC and electrolytic hydrogen in the European Union (EU) is also performed, where the carbon footprint is analysed for different scenarios and energy sources. The results show that the maximum grid carbon intensity to obtain negative emissions with DAC is estimated at 468 gCO2e/kWh, which is compliant with most of the EU countries’ current grid mix. Using only photovoltaics (PV) and wind, negative emissions of at least −0.81 tCO2e/tCO2 captured can be achieved. The maximum grid intensities allowing a reduction of the synthetic fuels carbon footprint compared with their fossil-fuels counterparts range between 96 and 151 gCO2e/kWh. However, to comply with the Renewable Energy Directive II (REDII) sustainability criteria to produce renewable fuels of non-biological origin, the maximum stays between 30.2 to 38.8 gCO2e/kWh. Only when using PV and wind is the EU average able to comply with the REDII threshold for all scenarios and fuels, with fuel emissions ranging from 19.3 to 25.8 gCO2e/MJ. These results highlight the importance of using renewable energies for the production of synthetic fuels compliant with the EU regulations that can help reduce emissions from difficult-to-decarbonise sectors

Let's hear it from the cities:On the role of renewable energy in reaching climate neutrality in urban Europe

Renewable energy sources have emerged globally as a key lever to ensure energy security and to promote climate mitigation. Cities need to exploit this energy transition, but how they are building their strategies and actions is undetermined. A new dataset, collected through the European 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission, offers unique insights on the 362 cities which expressed the ambition to reach climate neutrality by 2030. Insights include their level of preparedness, ambition, capacity and the risks envisaged in the pursuit of zero-emission and greener futures. This study focuses in particular on the role of renewable energy across high greenhouse gas emitting sectors in cities (e.g. buildings, mobility, waste and industry). It analyses i) the status quo for renewable energy generation, consumption, and policymaking, ii) the key measures to enhance and upscale renewable energy deployment in the near future, and iii) how policies and relevant instruments will evolve to curb emissions and accelerate the energy transition. The insights that emerge from the analysis are discussed in relation to existing evidence, to inform future research strands and forms of assistance for cities. Overall, for cities to deliver on large renewable projects, efforts need to be intensified, barriers need to be lifted and multi-governance approaches must be operationalised.</p