The depletion of fossil fuels is a major issue in energy generation; hence, biomass and renewable energy sources, especially bioenergy, are the solution. The dependence on bioenergy has many benefits to mitigate environmental pollution. It is imperative that the global society adopts these alternative, sustainable energy sources in order to mitigate the constant growth of climate change. Biomass and Bioenergy Solutions for Climate Change Mitigation and Sustainability highlights the challenges of energy conservation and current scenarios of existing fossil fuel uses along with pollution potential of burning fossil fuel. It further promotes the inventory, assessment, and use of biomass, pollution control, and techniques. This book provides the solution for climate change, mitigation, and sustainability. Covering topics such as biofuel policies, economic considerations, and microalgae biofuels, this premier reference source is an essential resource for environmental scientists, environmental engineers, government officials, business leaders, politicians, librarians, students and faculty of higher education, researchers, and academicians.
This Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report (IPCC-SRREN) assesses the potential role of renewable energy in the mitigation of climate change. It covers the six most important renewable energy sources – bioenergy, solar, geothermal, hydropower, ocean and wind energy – as well as their integration into present and future energy systems. It considers the environmental and social consequences associated with the deployment of these technologies and presents strategies to overcome technical as well as non-technical obstacles to their application and diffusion. SRREN brings a broad spectrum of technology-specific experts together with scientists studying energy systems as a whole. Prepared following strict IPCC procedures, it presents an impartial assessment of the current state of knowledge: it is policy relevant but not policy prescriptive. SRREN is an invaluable assessment of the potential role of renewable energy for the mitigation of climate change for policymakers, the private sector and academic researchers.
Climate change is a challenge facing human life. It will change mobility and asks for new energy solutions. Bioenergy has gained increased attention as an alternative to fossil fuels. Energy based on renewable sources may offer part of the solution. Bio ethanol based on sugar cane offers advantages to people, the environment and the economy. Not surprisingly, governments currently enact powerful incentives for the development and exploitation of bio ethanol. However, every inch we come closer to this achievement, evokes more scepticism. Many questions are raised relating to whether sugar cane is really a sustainable solution. Still much is unknown about the net release of carbon dioxide and what the impacts of sugar cane expansion are on green house gas emissions. This book looks at the scientific base of the debate on sugar cane bio ethanol. Authors from Europe, Brazil and the USA capture many aspects of what is known and address assumptions while not denying that still much is unknown. It covers impacts on climate change, land use, sustainability and market demands. This publication discusses public policy impacts, technology developments, the fuel-food dilemma and the millennium development goals. This makes this publication unique and extremely relevant for policymakers, scientists and the private energy sector worldwide.
Sustainability in agriculture and associated primary industries, which are both energy-intensive, is crucial for the development of any country. Increasing scarcity and resulting high fossil fuel prices combined with the need to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, make the improvement of energy efficient farming and increased use of renewable energy essential. This book provides a technological and scientific endeavor to assist society and farming communities in different regions and scales to improve their productivity and sustainability. To fulfill future needs of a modern sustainable agriculture, this book addresses highly actual topics providing innovative, effective and more sustainable solutions for agriculture by using sustainable, environmentally friendly, renewable energy sources and modern energy efficient, cost-improved technologies. The book highlights new areas of research, and further R&D needs. It helps to improve food security for the rapidly growing world population and to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel use in agriculture, which presently contributes 22% of the global carbon dioxide emissions. This book provides a source of information, stimuli and incentives for what and how new and energy efficient technologies can be applied as effective tools and solutions in agricultural production to satisfy the continually increasing demand for food and fibre in an economically sustainable way, while contributing to global climate change mitigation. It will be useful and inspiring to decision makers working in different authorities, professionals, agricultural engineers, researchers, and students concerned with agriculture and related primay industries, sustainable energy development and climate change mitigation projects.
Climate change poses a fundamental threat to humanity, and thus solutions for both mitigation and adaptation strategies are becoming increasingly necessary. Biochar can offer a range of environmental services, such as reclamation of degraded land, improvement of soil fertility and carbon sequestration. However, it also raises questions, regarding sustainable feedstock provision, biomass pyrolysis, and soil amendment. These questions, among various others, are addressed in this state-of-the-art compendium. Covering a broad geographical range, with regional assessments from North America, Europe, the Near East, and Southeast Asia, this interdisciplinary volume focuses on the entire biochar supply chain, from the availability and economics of biomass resources, to pyrolysis, and ultimately to the impacts on soil properties. The combination of theory with practical examples makes this a valuable book for researchers, policymakers, and graduate students alike, in fields such as soil science, sustainable development, climate change mitigation, biomass and bioenergy, forestry, and environmental engineering.
Since biomass and bioenergy are global issues, it is no surprise that each year there are contributions from countries all over the world. Contributions from South America have been increasing ever since conference inception in 1993, and it is particularly pleasing to note the extensive contributions to this volume from Brazil. Between the Third Biomass Conference of the Americas and this one, two conferences of the parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) occurred. In December of 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, COP3 established a list of mainly industrialized countries committed to a range of greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions by 2008 to 2010. These countries included all 29 countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change is investigating how biomass, bioenergy, and the biosphere fit into the question of GHG mitigation. A significant theme of these proceedings is the role of biomass and bioenergy in carbon management. One of the tools with which this issue is increasingly addressed is life-cycle analysis (LCA). Although it originated in the assessment of sustainability - a theme that came into prominence with Agenda 21 of the United Nations Conference on Environmental Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 - it has become so pervasive that it no longer merits a topic area of its own in this conference series. The major part of the contributions in these proceedings fill in the intersections of two vectors: the applications of biomass and bioenergy, and the production chain from biomass to bioenergy. Applications of biomass can be seen in six major categories: Daily Living - cooking and space heating at the household level Community needs Industry captive uses of bioenergy Materials and chemicals uses in conjuction with energy production or substitution Environmental Services Secondary energy forms such as electricity and biofuels that carry biomass derived energy from the rural and forestry sectors to the increasingly urban populations of the world The production chain addresses biomass resources, feedstocks, and their conversion to heat, biofuels, and value-added products. The theme of these proceedings is that biomass is a growth opportunity in green energy and value-added products. The papers detail how the modernization of the biomass energy sector, which started with the energy crises of the 1970s and 1980s, is now starting to mature. Novel processes such as fast pyrolysis, which did not even exist before 1970, are now reaching the market place. Biomass has moved from being merely a proposed energy source to being an advanced and modern one. Many elements of the biomass and bioenergy production chain that were proposed a decade ago are now in these pages as on-going demonstrations. Demonstrations of short-rotation wood crops as fiber and energy sources are reaching large scales; technology demonstrators of both electricity and liquid fuels production are also widespread and are detailed here. Major biomass and bioenergy and value-added-materials implementation programs are underway or about to start in many areas of the world. The experiences of those programs currently underway are recorded in these proceedings, and the analysis of these experiences is a major contribution to be found in these volumes.
There is an increasing awareness that climate change is caused by anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases that mainly originate from the use of fossil fuels. In the EU member states as well as in other parts of the world, energy policies are being developed that discriminate fossil fuels and /or promote the use of renewable energy sources. Together with increasing oil prices, the result is a steady increase in the demand for renewable energy sources, both for heat and power production and to a varying degree also for vehicle fuels. A transition to an economy that is more based on use of renewable biomass than on fossil fuels is initiated. As a consequence, conflicts between economic production of food, fodder and fuels and various ecosystem services (biodiversity, social and cultural values, etc) that are provided by forest and farmland are increasing as well. Hence, a developed thinking on how to balance between these services is desirable. This report summarizes the conclusions from two workshops on sustainability criteria in relation to tried and/or existing implemented production systems and describes general principles for a sustainable production of biofuels from agriculture and forestry in Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden.
The interactions between climate change, agriculture, and technology are of increasing concern to academicians, educators, and planners. After the publication of the first report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), studies of the impact of climate change on productive systems such as agriculture have multiplied. The best solution can be found in new technologies and tools. Intelligent Solutions for Optimizing Agriculture and Tackling Climate Change: Current and Future Dimensions explores the importance of artificial intelligence and its effects on the future of agriculture. It further highlights the opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence in the agricultural field. Covering topics such as agroforestry, farming productivity, and population projections, this premier reference source is an indispensable resource for climate scientists, agricultural scientists, policymakers, computer scientists, engineers, students and educators of higher education, libraries, researchers, and academicians.
Nanotechnology is considered a tool for solving problems and providing comfort for the livelihood of human beings and other animals. The use of nanoparticles in the last decade has grown rapidly and is currently used often. Nanotechnology can improve agricultural processes, such as soil quality and the quality of agricultural products, and provide specific applications for sustainable development. However, there are consequences of using these nanoparticles in today’s agriculture. The physicochemical properties of nanoparticles are the basis for several useful applications but also affect humans and ecosystems adversely. A new branch of toxicology, nanotoxicology, needs to address the specific problems caused by nanoparticles. Implications of Nanoecotoxicology on Environmental Sustainability provides relevant theoretical and practical frameworks and the latest empirical research findings on nanotechnology and its implications. It discusses these consequences in further detail and presents the research findings conducted to make this technology useful and sustainable for the future. Covering topics such as green synthesis, nanofertilizers, and toxicity analysis, this premier reference source is an indispensable resource for toxicologists, nanoscientists, agriculturalists, pharmacists, medical professionals, environmental engineers, environmental scientists, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.
Many industries are affected by the growing advancements and stability of the internet of things (IoT) technologies and tools. These include the agricultural fields. With such advancements, decision-enabling agricultural field data gets gathered and transmitted meticulously through numerous IoT sensors and devices deployed in agricultural fields and their surroundings. Further study on these technologies is required to ensure they are utilized appropriately within the field. Applying Drone Technologies and Robotics for Agricultural Sustainability conveys the latest trends and transitions happening in the digital space in order to fulfill the varying needs and sentiments of the agriculture domain. Covering key topics such as deep learning, robots, sustainability, and smart farming, this premier reference source is ideal for industry professionals, farmers, computer scientists, policymakers, researchers, scholars, practitioners, instructors, and students.
Insects are considered the largest group of animals on earth, as they represent more than one million documented species and about half of all species on a global scale. This makes this group of animals essential for global functioning and survival. Climate change is disrupting the distribution and abundance of insects and will have serious repercussions for human well-being. Climate Change and the Economic Importance and Damages of Insects presents a set of scientific studies in the field of economic entomology in the context of climate change, which is a critical research area that affects human well-being. Covering key topics such as pollination, crops, and economic damages, this premier reference source is ideal for environmentalists, scientists, researchers, scholars, academicians, practitioners, instructors, and students.
In tandem with the recent surge in interest by various industry players in meliponiculture that see the rapid expansion of the stingless industry globally, there is a need to disseminate new knowledge and research findings in stingless beekeeping. The demand for honey-based products and related activities in meliponiculture opens many opportunities and new challenges in the stingless bee industry that require answers and solutions. Recent Advances in Global Meliponiculture highlights the most recent work on meliponine and meliponiculture. It disseminates information, shares recent works, and fosters a global network on stingless bee research. Covering topics such as pollination services, vertical hive technology, and honey applications, this premier reference source is an essential resource for practitioners, meliponists, apiarists, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.
