• Energy Research
• NL close
• GB close
• CN close
• DE close
• Netherlands close

Fashion products made from repurposed materials (e.g., backpacks made from pineapple leaves) have become more prevalent nowadays, and their environmental sustainability is one of the core advantages. Yet, it is currently unclear how consumers respond to products made from repurposed materials. We conducted three experiments to examine the effects of three material features, namely function, sustainability, and distinguishability, on consumer preferences for fashion products made from repurposed materials. The results indicate that, when the function of repurposed materials is as good as that of conventional materials, consumers prefer a product made from repurposed materials over the same product made from conventional materials. Also, consumers in general prefer repurposed materials to be less visually distinguishable. Finally, when the sustainability of the repurposed products is emphasized, consumers appear more likely to choose products made from repurposed materials, even when these products have an inferior function. In conclusion, to promote fashion products made from repurposed materials, marketers may emphasize the function and sustainability of repurposed materials, and producers may manufacture repurposed materials that visually resemble conventional materials.

As part of global efforts to reduce dependence on carbon-based energy sources there has been a rapid increase in the installation of renewable energy devices. The installation and operation of these devices can result in conflicts with wildlife. In the marine environment, mammals may avoid wind farms that are under construction or operating. Such avoidance may lead to more time spent travelling or displacement from key habitats. A paucity of data on at-sea movements of marine mammals around wind farms limits our understanding of the nature of their potential impacts. Here, we present the results of a telemetry study on harbour seals Phoca vitulina in The Wash, south-east England, an area where wind farms are being constructed using impact pile driving. We investigated whether seals avoid wind farms during operation, construction in its entirety, or during piling activity. The study was carried out using historical telemetry data collected prior to any wind farm development and telemetry data collected in 2012 during the construction of one wind farm and the operation of another. Within an operational wind farm, there was a close-to-significant increase in seal usage compared to prior to wind farm development. However, the wind farm was at the edge of a large area of increased usage, so the presence of the wind farm was unlikely to be the cause. There was no significant displacement during construction as a whole. However, during piling, seal usage (abundance) was significantly reduced up to 25 km from the piling activity; within 25 km of the centre of the wind farm, there was a 19 to 83% (95% confidence intervals) decrease in usage compared to during breaks in piling, equating to a mean estimated displacement of 440 individuals. This amounts to significant displacement starting from predicted received levels of between 166 and 178 dB re 1 μPa(p-p). Displacement was limited to piling activity; within 2 h of cessation of pile driving, seals were distributed as per the non-piling scenario. Synthesis and applications. Our spatial and temporal quantification of avoidance of wind farms by harbour seals is critical to reduce uncertainty and increase robustness in environmental impact assessments of future developments. Specifically, the results will allow policymakers to produce industry guidance on the likelihood of displacement of seals in response to pile driving; the relationship between sound levels and avoidance rates; and the duration of any avoidance, thus allowing far more accurate environmental assessments to be carried out during the consenting process. Further, our results can be used to inform mitigation strategies in terms of both the sound levels likely to cause displacement and what temporal patterns of piling would minimize the magnitude of the energetic impacts of displacement. Wash_diagWash_diag.xlsx is the historic location data (pre windfarm construction) for the 19 individuals used in the analysis described in Russell et al.

Anthropogenic structures (e.g. weirs and dams) fragment river networks and restrict the movement of migratory fish. Poor understanding of behavioural response to hydrodynamic cues at structures currently limits the development of effective barrier mitigation measures. This study aimed to assess the effect of flow constriction and associated flow patterns on eel behaviour during downstream migration. In a field experiment, we tracked the movements of 40 tagged adult European eels (Anguilla anguilla) through the forebay of a redundant hydropower intake under two manipulated hydrodynamic treatments. Interrogation of fish trajectories in relation to measured and modelled water velocities provided new insights into behaviour, fundamental for developing passage technologies for this endangered species. Eels rarely followed direct routes through the site. Initially, fish aligned with streamlines near the channel banks and approached the intake semi-passively. A switch to more energetically costly avoidance behaviours occurred on encountering constricted flow, prior to physical contact with structures. Under high water velocity gradients, fish then tended to escape rapidly back upstream, whereas exploratory ‘search’ behaviour was common when acceleration was low. This study highlights the importance of hydrodynamics in informing eel behaviour. This offers potential to develop behavioural guidance, improve fish passage solutions and enhance traditional physical screening. Fish_detections_UL_CHFish positions derived from acoustic telemetry contained within excel file with 5 columns. 'Record' denotes tag detection numbered consecutively in sequence; 'tag_number' denotes the fish identification number; ‘PosX’ denotes fish x coordinate in UTM; ‘PosY’ denotes fish y coordinate in UTM, ‘Treatment’ denotes experimental treatment

This repository consists of two databases- CASE-ONSHORE and CASE-OFFSHORE, generated using OpenFAST v2.4 on NREL's 10-MW reference wind turbine for training data-driven probabilistic load surrogate models. The data is to be used for mapping 10-minute average environmental conditions to the corresponding 10-minute load statistics such as load average, fatigue and range at various locations on the tower and blades.

The repository contains the underlining data for "On the wake deflection of vertical axis wind turbines by pitched blades" This repository consists of experimental (PIV and force measurements) data in the wake of VAWTs with different blade pitch angles. The measured cases include an isolated VAWT with -10, 0, 10 degree pitch, respectively. Author contribution: Ming Huang: Conceptualization; Methodology; Validation; Experimental design; Carrying out the experiment; postprocessing Yugandhar Vijaykumar Patil: Design assistant; Carrying out the experiment; postprocessing Andrea Sciacchitano: Conceptualization; Experimental design; Methodology; Validation; Delphine De Tavernier: Conceptualization Carlos Simao Ferreira: Conceptualization; Methodology; Validation; Experimental design

The dataset covers biotic and abiotic data from the aquatic habitat of a population of the sediment-rooted macrophyte Myriophyllum spicatum in the temperate climate region (The Netherlands). The growth of M. spicatum was monitored in 0.2025 m2 plant baskets installed in an experimental ditch. Parameters monitored included biomass (fresh and dry weight), shoot length, seasonal short-term growth rates of shoots, relevant environmental parameters and weather data. This dataset includes the 2-year experimental biotic (macrophyte biomass and growth data) and environmental data (water quality data, sediment data). A second file includes the statistical data. A third file includes the weather data.

Figure 1data_Exp 2Figure 1 data: Condition of experimental seedlings in hummocks with contrasting shrub density and tree canopy in Experiment 2: No Trees - Low Shrub biomass (NTLS), No Trees - High Shrub biomass (NTHS), Present Trees - Low Shrub biomass (PTLS) and Present Trees - High shrub biomass (PTHS) during the warmest growing season (2011) and at the end of the experiment (2013). Seedling condition was defined as: healthy (< 50% of the needles turned yellow or brown) or unhealthy (> 50% of the needles turned yellow or brown). Seedlings were 1 month old at plantation time in the July 2010.Table 1_environmental conditions_Exp 1Table 1 data: Environmental conditions and vegetation characteristics in hummocks (circular and bands) and lawns for Experiment 1. Water table depth below surface is an average for the four growing seasons (2010-2013)Table 2_ photosynthesis data_Exp 1Table 2 photosynthesis data: Photosynthesis rates for experimental pine seedlings in hummocks (circular and bands) versus adjacent lawns for Experiment 1.Table 2_seedling responses_Exp 1Table 2 data: Responses of experimental pine seedlings in hummocks (circular and bands) versus adjacent lawns for Experiment 1 after 4 growing seasons. ST: Seeds inserted on top of moss; SB: Seeds inserted below moss; Small seedling (1 month old at plantation time); Large seedling (2 months old at plantation time). Emergence = % of planted seeds emerged after 1 year. Condition = % healthy seedlings. Stem growth corresponds to vertical stem growth for germinating (ST and SB) seedlings and new stem growth for older (small and large) seedlings.Table 3_regression seedling-environment_Exp 1Table 3 data for generalized linear models assessing the responses of experimental pine seedlings in hummocks (circular and bands) and adjacent lawns for Experiment 1 during the whole experimental period (2010-2013). ST: Seedlings from seeds inserted on top of moss; SB: Seedlings from seeds inserted below moss; Small seedling (1 month old at plantation time); Large seedling (2 months old at plantation time). Condition = % healthy seedlings. Growth = stem growth.Table 4_Environmental data_Exp 2Table 4: Environmental conditions in hummocks with contrasting shrub density and tree canopy in Experiment 2: No Trees - Low Shrub biomass (NTLS), No Trees - High Shrub biomass (NTHS), Present Trees - Low Shrub biomass (PTLS) and Present Trees - High shrub biomass (PTHS).Table 4 and Table S5a_seedling performance_Exp 2Table 4: Seedling performance in hummocks with contrasting shrub density and tree canopy in Experiment 2: No Trees - Low Shrub biomass (NTLS), No Trees - High Shrub biomass (NTHS), Present Trees - Low Shrub biomass (PTLS) and Present Trees - High shrub biomass (PTHS). Seedling emergence, condition and survival from seeds inserted below the moss (SB), and from small planted seedlings.Table S3_cox regression (survival analysis)_Exp 1Table S3: Data for Cox survival analysis for experimental pine seedlings in hummocks (circular and bands) versus adjacent lawns during 2010-2013. ST: Seedlings from seeds inserted on top of moss; SB: Seedlings from seeds inserted below moss; Small seedling (1 month old, 10 cm tall at plantation time); Large seedling (2 months old, 30 cm tall at plantation time).Table S4_ regression seedling-environment 2011_Exp 1Table S4: Data for generalized linear models assessing the responses of experimental pine seedlings in hummocks (circular and bands) and adjacent lawns for Experiment 1 in 2011. Small seedling (1 month old, 10 cm tall at plantation time); Large seedling (2 months old, 30 cm tall at plantation time). Condition = % healthy seedlings. Growth = stem growth. Boreal ecosystems are warming roughly twice as fast as the global average, resulting in woody expansion that could further speed up the climate warming. Boreal peatbogs are waterlogged systems that store more than 30% of the global soil carbon. Facilitative effects of shrubs and trees on the establishment of new individuals could increase tree cover with profound consequences for the structure and functioning of boreal peatbogs, carbon sequestration and climate. We conducted two field experiments in boreal peatbogs to assess the mechanisms that explain tree seedling recruitment and to estimate the strength of positive feedbacks between shrubs and trees. We planted seeds and seedlings of Pinus sylvestris in microsites with contrasting water-tables and woody cover and manipulated both shrub canopy and root competition. We monitored seedling emergence, growth and survival for up to four growing seasons and assessed how seedling responses related to abiotic and biotic conditions. We found that tree recruitment is more successful in drier topographical microsites with deeper water-tables. On these hummocks, shrubs have both positive and negative effects on tree seedling establishment. Shrub cover improved tree seedling condition, growth and survival during the warmest growing season. In turn, higher tree basal area correlates positively with soil nutrient availability, shrub biomass and abundance of tree juveniles. Synthesis. Our results suggest that shrubs facilitate tree colonization of peatbogs which further increases shrub growth. These facilitative effects seem to be stronger under warmer conditions suggesting that a higher frequency of warmer and dry summers may lead to stronger positive interactions between shrubs and trees that could eventually facilitate a shift from moss to tree-dominated systems.