WIDER Working Paper 2014/018 Producing biofuels in low-income countries: An integrated environmental and economic assessment for Tanzania

Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. UNU-WIDER gratefully acknowledges the financial contributions to the research programme from the governments of Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Terms of use: Documents in The World Institute for Development Economics Research (WIDER) was established by the United Nations University (UNU) as its first research and training centre and started work in Helsinki, Finland in 1985. The Institute undertakes applied research and policy analysis on structural changes affecting the developing and transitional economies, provides a forum for the advocacy of policies leading to robust, equitable and environmentally sustainable growth, and promotes capacity strengthening and training in the field of economic, and social policy-making. Work is carried out by staff researchers and visiting scholars in Helsinki and through networks of collaborating scholars and institutions around the world. UNU-WIDER, Katajanokanlaituri 6 B, 00160 Helsinki, Finland, wider.unu.edu The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s). Publication does not imply endorsement by the Institute or the United Nations University, nor by the programme/project sponsors, of any of the views expressed. Abstract: This paper evaluates the greenhouse gas emissions and economic impacts from producing biofuels in Tanzania. Sequentially-linked models capture natural resource constraints; emissions from land use change; economywide growth linkages; and household poverty. Results indicate that there are economic incentives to convert unused lands to sugarcane-ethanol production, but only grasslands (not forests) have a reasonable carbon payback period. There are also strong socioeconomic reasons to involve smallholders in feedstock production in order to reduce rural poverty, especially since our results indicate that biofuels have little effect on food production. Yet smallholders require more land than large-scale plantations and so face more binding natural resource and emissions constraints. Overall, environmental constraints alter the economically optimal biofuel strategy for Tanzania by limiting potential poverty reduction. Unlike previous studies, our integrated assessment suggests that a mixed farming system with greater emphasis on large-scale plantations is more appropriate for producing sugarcane-ethanol in Tanzani

Climate Smart Agriculture: Building Resilience to Climate Change

The book uses an economic lens to identify the main features of climate-smart agriculture (CSA), its likely impact, and the challenges associated with its implementation. Drawing upon theory and concepts from agricultural development, institutional, and resource economics, this book expands and formalizes the conceptual foundations of CSA. Focusing on the adaptation/resilience dimension of CSA, the text embraces a mixture of conceptual analyses, including theory, empirical and policy analysis, and case studies, to look at adaptation and resilience through three possible avenues: ex-ante reduction of vulnerability, increasing adaptive capacity, and ex-post risk coping. The book is divided into three sections. The first section provides conceptual framing, giving an overview of the CSA concept and grounding it in core economic principles. The second section is devoted to a set of case studies illustrating the economic basis of CSA in terms of reducing vulnerability, increasing adaptive capacity and ex-post risk coping. The final section addresses policy issues related to climate change. Providing information on this new and important field in an approachable way, this book helps make sense of CSA and fills intellectual and policy gaps by defining the concept and placing it within an economic decision-making framework. This book will be of interest to agricultural, environmental, and natural resource economists, development economists, and scholars of development studies, climate change, and agriculture. It will also appeal to policy-makers, development practitioners, and members of governmental and non-governmental organizations interested in agriculture, food security and climate change

Balanço ex-ante dos gases do efeito estufa nos programas de desenvolvimento na agricultura e em florestas

EX-ACT (Ex-Ante Carbon-balance Tool, ferramenta para o balanço ex-ante de Carbono) é desenvolvida pela Organização das Nações Unidas para Agricultura e Alimentação (FAO). Tem como finalidade de fornecer estimativas ex-ante do impacto de atenuação na agricultura e nos projetos de desenvolvimento florestal, estimando o saldo líquido das emissões dos gases do efeito estufa (GEE) e do seqüestro de carbono (C). EX-ACT é um sistema de contabilidade que considera o uso da terra, medindo estoques de C, mudanças do estoque por unidade de área, e emissões de CH4 e N2O expressos em CO2-eq por hectare e por ano. O resultado principal da ferramenta é uma estimativa do balanço de CO2-eq associados à adoção de opções de melhoria do manejo da terra, em comparação com um cenário chamado de "business as usual". EX-ACT foi desenvolvida usando principalmente as recomendações de 1996 para estabelecer os inventários nacionais de GEE (Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories IPCC, 2006) complementada por outras metodologias existentes e coeficientes padrão especificos quando disponíveis. Os valores padrão para as opções de mitigação no setor agrícola são na sua maioria provenientes do 4º Relatório de Avaliação do IPCC (2007). Assim, EX-ACT estima o balanço de C dos novos programas de investimentos, garantindo um método adequado e disponível para financiadores e agentes de planejamento, projetistas, e governantes para os setores da agricultura e da silvicultura nos países em desenvolvimento. A ferramenta também pode ajudar a identificar os impactos de atenuação de opções possíveis em vários projetos de investimento, e assim fornecer um critério adicional para escolhê-las como parte dos projetos.EX-ACT (EX-Ante Carbon-balance Tool) is a tool developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). It provides ex-ante measurements of the mitigation impact of agriculture and forestry development projects, estimating net C balance from GHG emissions and Carbon (C) sequestration. EX-ACT is a land-based accounting system, measuring C stocks, stock changes per unit of land, and CH4 and N2O emissions expressed in t CO2-eq per hectare and year. The main output of the tool is an estimation of the C-balance associated with the adoption of improved land management options, as compared with a "business as usual" scenario. EX-ACT has been developed using primarily the IPCC 2006 Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, complemented by other existing methodologies and reviews of default coefficients. Default values for mitigation options in the agriculture sector are mostly from the 4th Assessment Report of IPCC (2007). Thus, EX-ACT allows for the carbonbalance appraisal of new investment programmes by ensuring an appropriate method available for donors and planning officers, project designers, and decision makers within agriculture and forestry sectors in developing countries. The tool can also help to identify the mitigation impacts of various investment project options, and thus provide an additional criterion for consideration in project selection

Value Chain Analysis of Climate-smart Shan Tea Production in the Northern Mountainous Region of Vietnam

Agricultural production in the face of climate change requires a transformation and reorientation in agricultural systems and policy making. Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is such a transformative approach that aims to sustainably increase food security, by improving adaptation to climate change and capturing potential mitigation co-benefits. CSA approach goes beyond field level practices and encompasses value chains, food systems as well as enabling environments and policy. This paper provides a site-specific analysis of the contributions of organic and conventional Shan tea value chains (VCs) to CSA objectives by using a interdisciplinary approach. Our findings show that both organic and conventional Shan tea VCs simultaneously contribute to food security and adaptation. Shan tea plays a vital role in securing household income and has a strong potential in helping households to coping with extreme weather events. Potential mitigation options are mainly in the processing stage (GHG emissions from coal burning)

Linking food security, climate change adaptation and mitigation: the case of sustainable land management in Malawi

Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) aims at enhancing the capacity of farming systems to sustainably support food security in the context of climatic changes (CC). Questions arise about the profitability of alternative farming options and their cost-effectiveness in mitigating CC. A large dataset has been built through household surveys, key informant interviews and focus group discussions conducted in different agro ecological zones of Malawi. Farmers adopt a wide combination of sustainable land management (SLM) practices, earning often higher yields, profits and returns to labor than under conventional farming. Differences are more significant in dry areas indicating potential for CC adaptation. However, this may come at excessive costs in terms of capital and labor. Negative marginal abatement costs for most SLM options show synergies between increased farm incomes and CC mitigation. Cost- effectiveness of agriculture management practices is proposed as policy decision criterion to prioritize CSA interventions on the basis of economic efficiency in greenhouse gases abatement

The commissioning of the CUORE experiment: the mini-tower run

CUORE is a ton-scale experiment approaching the data taking phase in Gran Sasso National Laboratory. Its primary goal is to search for the neutrinoless double-beta decay in 130Te using 988 crystals of tellurim dioxide. The crystals are operated as bolometers at about 10 mK taking advantage of one of the largest dilution cryostat ever built. Concluded in March 2016, the cryostat commissioning consisted in a sequence of cool down runs each one integrating new parts of the apparatus. The last run was performed with the fully configured cryostat and the thermal load at 4 K reached the impressive mass of about 14 tons. During that run the base temperature of 6.3 mK was reached and maintained for more than 70 days. An array of 8 crystals, called mini-tower, was used to check bolometers operation, readout electronics and DAQ. Results will be presented in terms of cooling power, electronic noise, energy resolution and preliminary background measurements