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We argue that an understanding of livestock farming as normative practice clarifies how sustainability is to be understood in livestock farming. The sustainability of livestock farming is first approached by investigating its identity. We argue that the economic aspect qualifies and the formative aspect founds the livestock farming practice. Observing the normativity related to these aspects will be the first task for the livestock farmer. In addition, we can distinguish conditioning norms applicable to the livestock farming practice which should be observed for competent performance of the practice. Failing to do justice to this normativity might affect the practice’s sustainability only in the long term—this is especially the case with conditioning norms. Motives to observe normativity have, therefore, the character of an ultimate conviction regarding the flourishing of the practice. Finally, the sustainability of the livestock farming practice crucially depends on the broader food system of which it is part.

This research proposes an innovative solar thermal plant able to generate mechanical power through an optimized system of heliostats with Scheffler-type solar receivers coupled with screw-type steam expanders. Scheffler receivers appear to perform better than parabolic trough collectors due to the high compactness of the focal receiver, which minimizes convective and radiative heat losses even at high vaporization temperatures. At the same time, steam screw expanders are volumetric machines that can be used to produce mechanical power with satisfactory efficiency also by admitting two-phase mixtures and with further advantages compared to steam turbines: low working fluid velocities, low operating pressures, and avoidance of overheating. This study establishes a mathematical model to assess the energetic advantages of the planned solar thermal power system by evaluating the solar-to-electricity efficiency for different off-design working conditions. For this purpose, a numerical model on the Scheffler receiver is initially investigated, thus assessing all the energy losses which affect the heat transfer phase. A thermodynamic model is then developed to evaluate the energy losses and performance of the screw expander under real working conditions. Finally, parametric optimization of the solar energy conversion is performed in a wide range of operating conditions by establishing thermodynamic formulations related to the whole solar electricity generation system. Water condensation pressure and vaporization temperature are so optimized with respect to global energy conversion efficiency which, under the best operating conditions achieved in this research, rises from 10.9% to 14.4% with increasing solar irradiation intensity. Hence, the combined use of screw expanders and Scheffler receivers for solar thermal power system application can be a promising technology with advantages over parabolic dish concentrators. Novelty statement: This research proposes an innovative direct steam solar power plant based on an SRC, with water utilized as both heat transfer and working fluid, equipped with Scheffler solar receivers as a thermal source and screw expanders as work-producing devices. Technical studies and energy assessments of this kind of SEGS at part-load operation do not exist in scientific literature; after reviewing the literature, it was determined that volumetric expanders have been rarely combined with Scheffler receivers for solar thermal power system application. In effect, combined use of screw expanders and Scheffler-type solar concentrator in a direct steam solar power system represents a completely new plant configuration; however, as a promising DSG solar system, at present numerical model of this new sort of SEGS is lacked in literature and the optimum operating conditions have yet to be defined. For this reason, the chief objective of this paper is to define a first parametric optimization of all thermodynamic variables involved to maximize global efficiency of the proposed solar thermal power generation system for ordinary working conditions.

Recent empirical research indicates that certain types of emissions follow an inverted-U or environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) as income grows. This regularity has been interpreted as a possible de-linking of economic growth and patterns of certain pollutants for developed economies. In this paper the empirical basis of this result is investigated by considering some statistical particularities of the various EKC studies performed. It is argued that the inverted-U relationship between income and emissions estimated from panel data need not hold for specific individual countries over time. Based on insights from 'intensity-of-use' analysis in resource economics, an alternative growth model is specified and estimated for three types of emissions (CO

We propose a method that combines local productivity factors, economic factors, crop-specific sensitivity to climatic extremes, and future climate change scenarios, to assess potential impacts of extreme weather events on agricultural production systems. Our assessment is spatially explicit and uses discounted time series of cash flows taking into account expected future impacts on yield and crop quality, to estimate changes in the expected net present value (NPV) of agricultural systems. We assess the economic feasibility of a portfolio of adaptation measures by considering their initial investments, annual costs, and effectiveness in reducing crop damage. We apply the method to investigate potential economic impacts of extreme weather events in arable farming systems in the Netherlands around 2050. We find that the expected increase in extreme weather events frequency can severely affect future productivity potential. Particularly, heat waves, warm winters, and high intensity rainfall are expected to substantially undermine the future economic viability of Dutch arable farming systems. The results indicate considerable differences between regions in terms of vulnerability to climatic extremes: while some regions are severely impacted by all climatic extremes, other regions consistently demonstrate high resilience to increases in extreme event frequency. The findings are robust to a wide range of scenarios and suggest that the interactions between economic factors and management practices (particularly, crop specialisation) are decisive drivers of the economic viability of agricultural systems under more frequent climatic extremes. However, the exact magnitude of the impacts remains highly uncertain, as we do not consider endogenous interactions in market conditions resulting from climate change and socio-economic developments. Nevertheless, crop adaptation measures should be regarded as no-regret strategies, since they alleviate both economic impacts and uncertainty around impact magnitude. The proposed method provides insights in region-specific threats and opportunities that are relevant for stakeholders and policy-makers. This information improves communication on main climate risks at the local and regional levels and contributes to prioritising adaptation strategies.

Bioenergy crops are well known for their ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the soil carbon stock. Although such crops are often held to be in competition with food crops and thus raise the question of current and future food security, at the same time mitigation measures are required to tackle climate change and sustain local farming communities and crop production. However, in some cases the actions envisaged for specific pedo-climatic conditions are not always economically sustainable by farmers. In this frame, energy crops with high environmental adaptability and yields, such as giant reed (Arundo donax L.), may represent an opportunity to improve farm incomes, making marginal areas not suitable for food production once again productive. In so doing, three of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations would be met, namely SDG 2 on food security and sustainable agriculture, SDG 7 on reliable, sustainable and modern energy, and SDG 13 on action to combat climate change and its impacts. In this work, the response of giant reed in the marginal areas of an agricultural district of southern Italy (Destra Sele) and expected farm incomes under climate change (2021-2050) are evaluated. The normalized water productivity index of giant reed was determined (WP; 30.1gm-2) by means of a SWAP agro-hydrological model, calibrated and validated on two years of a long-term field experiment. The model was used to estimate giant reed response (biomass yield) in marginal areas under climate change, and economic evaluation was performed to determine expected farm incomes (woodchips and chopped forage). The results show that woodchip production represents the most profitable option for farmers, yielding a gross margin 50% lower than ordinary high-input maize cultivation across the study area.

Current economic instruments aimed at climate change mitigation focus mainly on CO(2) emissions, but efficient climate mitigation needs to focus on other greenhouse gases as well as CO(2). This study investigates the distributional effects of climate change taxes on households belonging to different income and lifestyle groups; and it compares the effects of a CO(2) tax with a multiple GHG tax in the UK in terms of cost efficiency and distributional effects. Results show that a multi GHG tax is more efficient than a CO(2) tax due to lower marginal abatement costs, and that both taxes are regressive, with lower income households paying a relatively larger share of their income for the taxes than higher income households. A shift from a CO(2) tax to a GHG tax will reduce and shift the tax burden between consumption categories such as from energy-intensive products to food products. Consumers have different abilities to respond to the tax and change their behavior due to their own socio-economic attributes as well as the physical environment such as the age of the housing stock, location, and the availability of infrastructure. The housing-related carbon emissions are the largest component of the CO(2) tax payments for low income groups and arguments could be made for compensation of income losses and reduction of fuel poverty through further government intervention.

This empirical paper tests for trade-facilitated spillovers in the convergence of energy productivity across 16 European Union (EU) countries from 1995 to 2005. One might anticipate that by inducing specialization, trade limits the potential for convergence in energy productivity. Conversely, by inducing competition and knowledge diffusion, trade may spur sectors to greater energy productivity. Unlike most previous work on convergence, we explain productivity dynamics from cross-country interactions at a detailed sector level and apply a spatial panel data approach to explicitly account for trade-flow related spatial effects in the convergence analysis. Our study confirms the existence of convergence in manufacturing energy productivity, caused by efficiency improvements in lagging countries, while undermined by increasing international differences in sector structure. Further, we find that trade flows explain 30 to 40% of the unobserved variation in energy productivity. Trade continues to explain the unobserved variation in energy productivity even after accounting for geographic proximity. Last, we find that those countries and sectors with higher dependence on trade both have higher energy productivity growth and a higher rate of convergence, further implying that trade can enhance energy productivity. Thus, unlike concerns that trade may spur a 'race to the bottom', we find that promoting trade may help stimulate energy efficiency improvements across countries.

Studies addressing the role of large herbivores on nitrogen cycling in grasslands have suggested that the direction of effects depends on soil fertility. Via selection for high quality plant species and input of dung and urine, large herbivores have been shown to speed up nitrogen cycling in fertile grassland soils while slowing down nitrogen cycling in unfertile soils. However, recent studies show that large herbivores can reduce nitrogen mineralization in some temperate fertile soils, but not in others. To explain this, we hypothesize that large herbivores can reduce nitrogen mineralization in loamy or clay soils through soil compaction, but not in sandy soils. Especially under wet conditions, strong compaction in clay soils can lead to periods of soil anoxia, which reduces decomposition of soil organic matter and, hence, N mineralization. In this study, we use a long-term (37-year) field experiment on a salt marsh to investigate the hypothesis that the effect of large herbivores on nitrogen mineralization depends on soil texture. Our results confirm that the presence of large herbivores decreased nitrogen mineralization rate in a clay soil, but not in a sandy soil. By comparing a hand-mown treatment with a herbivore-grazed treatment, we show that these differences can be attributed to herbivore-induced changes in soil physical properties rather than to above-ground biomass removal. On clay soil, we find that large herbivores increase the soil water-filled porosity, induce more negative soil redox potentials, reduce soil macrofauna abundance, and reduce decomposition activity. On sandy soil, we observe no changes in these variables in response to grazing. We conclude that effects of large herbivores on nitrogen mineralization cannot be understood without taking soil texture, soil moisture, and feedbacks through soil macrofauna into account.