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In this study we investigate the implications of reaching the 2 °C climate target for global woody biomass use by applying the Global Biosphere Management Model (GLOBIOM) and the recently published SSP-RCP scenario calculations. We show that the higher biomass demand for energy needed to reach the 2 °C target can be achieved without significant distortions to woody biomass material use and that it can even benefit certain forest industries and regions. This is because the higher woody biomass use for energy increases the demand for forest industry by-products, which makes forest industry final products production more profitable and compensates for the cost effect of increased competition over raw materials. The higher woody biomass use for energy is found to benefit sawnwood, plywood and chemical pulp production, which provide large amounts of by-products, and to inhibit fiberboard and mechanical pulp production, which provide small amounts of by-products. At the regional level, the higher woody biomass use for energy is found to benefit material production in regions, which use little roundwood for energy (Russia, North-America and EU28), and to inhibit material production in regions, which use large amounts of roundwood for energy (Asia, Africa and South-America). Even if the 2 °C target increases harvest volumes in the tropical regions significantly compared to the non-mitigation scenario, harvest volumes remain in these regions at a relatively low level compared to the harvest potential.

Since the inception of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, there has been much conceptual progress on the linkages across the 17 goals and their 169 targets. While this kind of conceptualization is an essential first step, action must now move towards systematic policy design, implementation, and multi-stakeholder collaborations that can translate such understanding into concrete results. This study is a reality check of such quasi-political global development agendas by the United Nations and its implications on Austrian forestry. Although forestry is not a goal in itself, forests as an element have been included under SDG15 (Life on Land). In this study, the linkages of forestry with potential synergies or trade-offs within and between the SDGs have been assessed through a literature survey and complemented with the perception of opinion leaders across the Austrian forestry sector on the same. The insights about awareness, design, implementation, and the necessity of mainstreaming the SDGs into the policy structure of Austria were reviewed. Besides facilitating the goals of sustainable forest management (SFM) in Austria, the SDG15 is not only strongly related to, but is likely to aid, the achievement of other SDGs, such as human health (SDG3), provision of clean water (SDG6), affordable & clean energy (SDG7), and climate action (SDG13). The opinion leaders perceive the SDGs as well-placed but broad. Some this broadness is a positive aspect of the SDGs. On the other hand, the 15-year (2015–2030) tenure of the SDGs is perceived to be inadequate to match the temporal scale of forest development. Apparently, the success of the SDGs will strictly depend upon coordination, governance, and most importantly, awareness among all stakeholders. Therefore, in addition to “leaving no one behind”, the SDGs must evidently provide incentives benefitting everybody.

Abstract BackgroundEconomic benefit has been analyzed for the yield of farming products when designing a farming system, while waste treatment also generates profitable energy products for this system. The economic factor is decisive in decision-making for applying waste treatment solutions for a small-scale farming system. A household farming system in ​​the Mekong Delta generates many kinds of organic wastes, but most of the agricultural waste resources are disposed of into the environment. MethodsThis study approaches an analysis of economic-environmental-energy (EEE) efficiency for waste treatment of an integrated livestock-orchard (LO) system on a household scale in the Mekong Delta. This novel analysis method is based on the energy content of biomass and its cost. The EEE efficiency is optimized to gain objective functions regarding energy yield efficiency, system profit, and CO2 sequestration for the treatment model. The algorithms are built for optimizing these objective functions. ResultsThe optimization results show the treatment model of pyrolysis and pelleting gain all the objective functions with high efficiency. The model is efficiently applied for the LO system that generates more than 100 kilograms of orchard residues and 3,000 kilograms of pig manure. The system with a charcoal oven and pellet machine is capable to gain energy efficiency due to its potential biofuel products, such as biochars and pellet products. A treatment model of composting, pyrolysis, and pelleting gives the best performance of overall EEE efficiency. ConclusionsThis work has proven economic benefits from integrating biogas tank, charcoal oven, and pellet machine in an integrated LO system. The system contributes not only for reducing CO2 emissions but also for supplementing secondary renewable bioenergy, as well as for increasing incomes and thus supporting livelihoods for the local farming households.

Abstract Background Mineral precipitates (scaling) from deep saline thermal waters often constitute a major problem during geothermal energy production. The occurrence of scale-fragments accumulating and clogging pipes, filters, and heat exchangers is of particular concern regarding an efficient energy extraction. Methods Carbonate scale-fragments from different sections of two geothermal power plants were collected and studied in a high-resolution scaling forensic approach comprising of microstructural characterization, elemental mapping, and stable carbon and oxygen isotope transects. The solid-phase analyses were evaluated in the context of natural environmental and technical (man-made) production conditions. Results and discussion Our results indicate an interaction of metal sulfide mineral layers mainly from H2S corrosion of the steel pipes and CaCO3 nucleation and crystal growth. A conceptual model of scale-fragment development addresses the relevance of two key interfaces: 1) the corrosion layer between the steel substrate and calcite scale and 2) the scale surface versus thermal fluid flow. The corrosion products constitute an attractive crystallization substrate of brittle and mechanically weak consistency. A rough carbonate scale surface tends to induce (micro) turbulences and increased flow resistance (frictional forces). These factors promote partial exfoliation, scale-fragment mobilization, and rapid clogging. This investigation highlights the potential of detailed petrographic and geochemical analyses of mineral precipitates for evaluating favorable versus unfavorable processes in geotechnical environmental settings.

Abstract At present, energy and fertilizer requirements of many of the developing countries are largely met by locally available, non-commercial sources, such as firewood and farm wastes. Extensive use of firewood is one of the factors that can lead to deforestation. When organic farm wastes are burnt, soil nutrients, which should return to soil, are lost and this can severely affect agricultural production. The problem of efficient utilization of these locally available resources, therefore, needs to be studied in a systematic manner. As an option for efficient utilization of local resources, bio-gas plants are considered, taking India as a case study. In these plants, animal dung and agricultural byproducts are utilized to obtain both methane and fertilizer through anaerobic fermentation. This is an example of appropriate technology for rural environments, which requires low investment, which does not need highly skilled labor and which can be operated with local materials and self-help in the 576,000 villages of India. The economic benefits to a family using a bio-gas plant and the impact of its widespread acceptance on a national scale are evaluated. It is felt, however, that the scope of such individual family bio-gas plants is likely to be limited for a number of reasons. To realize the potential of bio-gas fully, village plants of about 200 m3 capacity for approx. 100 families are needed. The introduction of such seemingly sensible new technologies has failed in the past for want of appropriate management and organizational structures and, consequently, for want of social participation by persons of various income groups in the successful operation of such community plants. To remedy this, a pricing policy for purchase of farmwastes and distribution of gas and fertilizer has been suggested as an essential tool to ensure that no-one is worse off by the introduction of bio-gas plants and thus to motivate the required participation in the scheme. Given a different organizational set-up, the idea could also be tried out for providing energy and sanitation in urban areas. The impact of full-scale adoption could mean that, by 2000 ad, almost 90% of the rural energy requirements of the domestic sector could be met; at present, this accounts for about 45% of the total energy consumption in India. The consequent reduction in firewood consumption would help to prevent deforestation. In addition, organic manure containing two million tons of additional nitrogen would be available every year to enhance soil nutrients, hence boosting food production and helping to solve the problem of sanitation at the same time.

A study of the production of prompt J/ψ mesons contained in jets in proton-proton collisions at s=8TeV is presented. The analysis is based on data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.1 fb−1 collected with the CMS detector at the LHC. For events with at least one observed jet, the angular separation between the J/ψ meson and the jet is used to test whether the J/ψ meson is part of the jet. The analysis shows that most prompt J/ψ mesons having energy above 15 GeV and rapidity |y|<1 are contained in jets with pseudorapidity |ηjet|<1. The differential distributions of the probability to have a J/ψ meson contained in a jet as a function of jet energy for a fixed J/ψ energy fraction are compared to a theoretical model using the fragmenting jet function approach. The data agree best with fragmenting jet function calculations that use a long-distance matrix element parameter set in which prompt J/ψ mesons are predicted to be unpolarized. This technique demonstrates a new way to test predictions for prompt J/ψ production using nonrelativistic quantum chromodynamics. Physics Letters B, 804 ISSN:0370-2693 ISSN:0031-9163 ISSN:1873-2445