Neonicotinoids and their substitutes in sustainable pest control

ISBN 978-3-8047-4144-7, EASAC / FEAM REPORT (European Academies Science Advisory Council / Federation of Auropean Academies of Medicine

Carbon sequestration potential of the South Wales Coalfield

This paper presents a preliminary evaluation of the carbon dioxide (CO2) storage capacity of the unmined coal resources in the South Wales Coalfield, UK. Although a significant amount of the remaining coal may be mineable through traditional techniques, the prospects for opening new mines appear poor. Also, many of the South Wales coal seams are lying unused since they are too deep to be mined economically using conventional methods. There is instead a growing worldwide interest in the potential for releasing the energy value of such coal reserves through alternative technologies – for example through carbon dioxide sequestration with enhanced coal bed methane recovery. In this study, geographical information systems and three-dimensional interpolation are used to obtain the total unmined coal resource below 500 m deep, where the candidate seams for carbon dioxide sequestration are found. The ‘proved’, ‘probable’ and ‘possible’ carbon dioxide storage capacities of the South Wales Coalfield are then obtained using an established methodology. Input parameters are based on statistical distributions, considering a combination of laboratory coal characterisation results and literature review. The results are a proved capacity of 70·1 Mt carbon dioxide, a probable capacity of 104·9 Mt carbon dioxide and a possible capacity of 152·0 Mt carbon dioxide

Variation in beliefs about 'fracking' between the UK and US

In decision-making on the politically-contentious issue of unconventional gas development, the UK Government and European Commission are attempting to learn from the US experience. Although economic, environmental, and health impacts and regulatory contexts have been compared cross-nationally, public perceptions and their antecedents have not. We conducted similar online panel surveys of national samples of UK and US residents simultaneously in September 2014 to compare public perceptions and beliefs affecting such perceptions. The US sample was more likely to associate positive impacts with development (i.e., production of clean energy, cheap energy, and advancing national energy security). The UK sample was more likely to associate negative impacts (i.e., water contamination, higher carbon emissions, and earthquakes). Multivariate analyses reveal divergence cross-nationally in the relationship between beliefs about impacts and support/opposition – especially for beliefs about energy security. People who associated shale gas development with increased energy security in the UK were over three times more likely to support development than people in the US with this same belief. We conclude with implications for policy and communication, discussing communication approaches that could be successful cross-nationally and policy foci to which the UK might need to afford more attention in its continually evolving regulatory environment

Consolidated briefing of biochemical ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass

AbstractBioethanol production is one pathway for crude oil reduction and environmental compliance. Bioethanol can be used as fuel with significant characteristics like high octane number, low cetane number and high heat of vaporization. Its main drawbacks are the corrosiveness, low flame luminosity, lower vapor pressure, miscibility with water, and toxicity to ecosystems. One crucial problem with bioethanol fuel is the availability of raw materials. The supply of feedstocks for bioethanol production can vary season to season and depends on geographic locations. Lignocellulosic biomass, such as forest-based woody materials, agricultural residues and municipal waste, is prominent feedstock for bioethanol cause of its high availability and low cost, even though the commercial production has still not been established. In addition, the supply and the attentive use of microbes render the bioethanol production process highly peculiar. Many conversion technologies and techniques for biomass-based ethanol production are under development and expected to be demonstrated. In this work a technological analysis of the biochemical method that can be used to produce bioethanol is carried out and a review of current trends and issues is conducted

Beyond carbon pricing: policy levers for negative emissions technologies

This paper explores policies for Negative Emissions Technologies (NETs), in an attempt to move beyond the supply-side focus of the majority of NETs research, as well as the current dominance of carbon pricing as the main NETs policy proposal. The paper identifies a number of existing policies from four key areas - energy/transport, agriculture, sub-soil, and oceans - which will have an impact on three NETs: Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS), Direct Air Capture (DAC), and terrestrial Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW). We propose that non-climate co-benefits may be valuable in terms of the policy ‘demand pull’ for NETs; in particular, we find that ERW may provide multiple co-benefits which can be mandated through existing policy structures. However, interaction with numerous policy areas may also create barriers, particularly where there is tension between the priorities of different government departments. On the basis of existing and analogous policies from a range of geographical contexts and scales, this paper proposes four options for NETs policy that could be reasonably implemented in the near-term. We also argue that ERW demonstrates the importance of scale and framing, because the policy environment depends on whether it is framed as a soil amendment at local scales or as a climate stabilisation technique at international scale