The environmental impacts of palm oil in context

Delivering the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires balancing demands on land between agriculture (SDG 2) and biodiversity (SDG 15). The production of vegetable oils, and in particular palm oil, illustrates these competing demands and trade-offs. Palm oil accounts for 40% of the current global annual demand for vegetable oil as food, animal feed, and fuel (210 million tons (Mt)), but planted oil palm covers less than 5-5.5% of total global oil crop area (ca. 425 Mha), due to oil palm’s relatively high yields5. Recent oil palm expansion in forested regions of Borneo, Sumatra, and the Malay Peninsula, where >90% of global palm oil is produced, has led to substantial concern around oil palm’s role in deforestation. Oil palm expansion’s direct contribution to regional tropical deforestation varies widely, ranging from 3% in West Africa to 47% in Malaysia. Oil palm is also implicated in peatland draining and burning in Southeast Asia. Documented negative environmental impacts from such expansion include biodiversity declines, greenhouse gas emissions, and air pollution. However, oil palm generally produces more oil per area than other oil crops, is often economically viable in sites unsuitable for most other crops, and generates considerable wealth for at least some actors. Global demand for vegetable oils is projected to increase by 46% by 20509. Meeting this demand through additional expansion of oil palm versus other vegetable oil crops will lead to substantial differential effects on biodiversity, food security, climate change, land degradation, and livelihoods. Our review highlights that, although substantial gaps remain in our understanding of the relationship between the environmental, socio-cultural and economic impacts of oil palm, and the scope, stringency and effectiveness of initiatives to address these, there has been little research into the impacts and trade-offs of other vegetable oil crops. 65 Greater research attention needs to be given to investigating the impacts of palm oil production 66 compared to alternatives for the trade-offs to be assessed at a global scale

Excitation functions of some deuteron-induced nuclear reactions on Al

Excitation functions of the reactions 27Al(d,αp)24Na, 27Al(d,2p)27Mg and 27Al(d,p)28Al were measured by the activation technique up to deuteron energies of 37 MeV. The available experimental databases of the reaction products 27Mg and 28Al were extended and compared with the nuclear model calculations based on the code TALYS-1.8. Our measured data are reproduced well by the model calculations after adjustment of a few free input parameters. The cross-section ratio of the (d,αp) to (d,2p) process as a function of projectile energy was deduced from the measured data, and the result is interpreted in terms of competition between a proton and an α-particle emission

Excitation functions for the cyclotron production of Tc-99m and Mo-99

Excitation functions for the Mo-100(p,2n)Tc-99m, Mo-100(p,pn)Mo-99 and Mo-98(p,gamma)Tc-99m nuclear reactions were determined using 97.4 and 99.5% isotopic enrichment of Mo-100 and Mo-98, respectively. The irradiations were performed on three different cyclotrons with overlapping data points from 6 to 65 MeV. The optimum energy range for the Mo-100(p,2n)Tc-99m reaction is 22 --> 12 MeV with a peak at similar to 17 MeV and maximum cross section of similar to 200 mb, Over this energy range the production yield of Tc-99m amounts to 11.2 mCi (415 MBq)/mu A h or 102.8 mCi (3804 MBq)/mu A at saturation. There is no serious radionuclidic impurity problem, Production of Mo-99 is not viable due to the low cross section (similar to 130 mb) over the proton energy range of 30 to 50 MeV. The Mo-98(p,gamma)Tc-99m reaction was found to have a cross section of Tc-99m generator, could consider use of a > 17 MeV proton energy cyclotron for regional production of Tc-99m. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved