Bioelectricity in Malaysia: economic feasibility,environmental and deforestation implications

We investigate the economic feasibility of bioelectricity production from biomass in Malaysia and its impact on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and storage, agricultural prices, agricultural employment and deforestation. For this purpose, we develop a partial equilibrium model that projects agricultural prices, production, imports, exports, domestic consumption and land use in 5‐year increments between 2015 and 2065. Our results show that by 2030 biomass‐generated electricity can supply 36.5 per cent of the electricity generated in Malaysia, 16 times more than the 2016 electricity supply from biomass. Increased bioelectricity production from biomass will significantly reduce GHG emissions and will help Malaysia meet its commitment in the Paris Agreement to mitigate GHG emission by 45 per cent before 2030. Our modelling shows that biomass‐generated electricity creates a derived demand for waste biomass that expands the area of oil palm plantations. The expansion lowers agricultural prices, boosts agricultural employment and leads to some deforestation as landowners clear rainforest to plant oil palm trees. Nonetheless, the deforestation does not increase GHG emissions since GHG gains from bioelectricity significantly exceed GHG losses from deforestation.     

Livestock intensification as a climate policy: Lessons from the Brazilian case

Brazil is trying to identify ways to ally economic growth with climate change mitigation. Productivity gains in livestock have been pointed out as a promising alternative to achieve that goal. Thus, this paper analyses the economic impacts of a policy of productivity gains in the Brazilian livestock. Besides, we evaluate if the policy may conciliate agricultural growth and deforestation control, bearing in mind the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from land-use changes. The analysis was carried out through a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, tailored to represent land-use changes, GHG emissions and removals. Besides, it made progress modeling the heterogeneity of climate, soils, and emissions in inter-regional models with many regions. The results show that productivity gains can effectively “save” land and thus avoid deforestation, especially in the Amazon and Cerrado (savannah) biomes. The policy also may boost the economic growth, spreading it to other regions of Brazil, like Centre-West and North, and increasing income and consumption in those places. However, as a climate policy, focused on the reduction of GHG emissions, the results may be counterproductive. The net amount issued may increase, as a result of the positive stimulus of the policy on the economy, and GHG emissions are directly related to the economic growth.     

Assessment of land use and land cover changes and valuation of carbon stocks in the Sergipe semiarid region,Brazil: 1992–2030

The semiarid region in the state of Sergipe, Brazil, approximately 11,000 km², has experienced high deforestation rates in the last decades, which ultimately contribute to global climatic changes. The valuation of ecosystem services of CO₂ sequestration can support definition of environmental policies to decrease deforestation in that region. This study aimed to assess land use and land cover changes in the Sergipe semiarid region between 1992 and 2017 by applying remotely sensed data and technics; simulate the land use and land cover changes between 2017 and 2030 by applying a cellular automaton model, by assuming current land use trends (Business as Usual – BAU) as a reference scenario, and a more conservative scenario (Protected Forest – PF), in which was assumed an effective enforcement of the Brazilian Forest Code established in 2012; simulate the carbon stocks by 2017 assuming the BAU and PF scenarios by 2030, and estimate the Carbon balance between the 2030 and 2017 scenarios; and estimate the economic valuation of carbon emission and sequestration by using the InVEST software. The results showed that agriculture (cropped lands) was main driver of the landscape changes in the study area, which increased 14% by 2017, a net increase of 1494.45 km². The results showed that the total Carbon emissions would reach 736,900 Mg CO₂-eq by assuming the BAU scenario, which would increase the cost of opportunity up to US$ 17.7 million and a social carbon cost varying between US$ 10.3 and US$ 30.2 million. The restoration of the permanent preservation areas could contribute to increase Carbon sequestration up to 481,900 Mg CO₂-eq by 2030, which is equivalent cost of US$ 11.6 million. The natural landscape in the Sergipe semiarid region was strongly affected by deforestation activities occurred between 1992 and 2017. It requires, therefore, effective actions to support and promote restoration of degraded areas. The forested areas within the Sergipe semiarid region were the most affected type of vegetation because of expansion of agricultural fields soil exposures (Exposed Land). Environmental assessments based on scenarios and economic valuations can provide crucial information to support policy and decision makers to improve strategies for environmental management and conservation.     

山西省农业温室气体排放探析

[目的]关注农业温室气体的排放,有利于农业生态文明建设。[方法]文章以山西省农业作为研究对象,运用实地调研和文献查阅法对山西省农业现状进行了分析、并运用农业系统的碳排放估算方法对2006—2015年的农业投入要素和畜禽养殖数量产生的碳排放进行了测算。[结果](1)山西省农业碳排放量呈现先上升后趋于稳定的状态,近年来农业碳排放总量维持在220万t左右,农业投入要素产生的碳排放比重从高到低依次为化肥、农膜、柴油、农药、灌溉和翻耕;(2)种植业碳排放最高的运城市约为36.359万t,排放最低的阳泉市为2.782万t,运城市是阳泉市的13倍;(3)畜禽养殖数量决定畜禽碳排放量的数值, 2015年山西省养殖业CH_4排放量最大的是晋中市,排放量达到4 260.56t,养殖业CH_4排放量最小的是阳泉市,排放量为387.51t,晋中市的排放量是阳泉市的11倍;(4)受自然资源、农业政策和当地经济发展状况的影响,山西省各地市的碳排放分布不均匀。[结论]建议农户采用低碳农业生产方式;政府鼓励适当的农业规模化生产、鼓励低碳生产技术的研发和使用,兼顾经济、生态和社会三方效益,合理发展低碳农业。     

Land use and climate change in the UK

This paper reviews the relationships between land use and climate change. It explores how land use decisions will be affected by future changes in the climate, but also the feedbacks from land use change to the global climate system through greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes. Past changes in land use were characterised by decreasing areas of agricultural use and increasing areas of forested and urbanised land. This has led to UK land use being a net sink for GHGs, mostly due to forestation. However, existing forests have on average passed their age for maximum net removals of carbon from the atmosphere. In the next decade at least, net removals from UK forests are likely to decrease significantly.Longer term scenarios of future land use change are consistent in their expectation of further declines in the agricultural area used for food production – offset to some extent by increased bioenergy cropping – along with increases in forested and urban areas. These trends are broadly consistent with the observed past land use change, but are calculated from various assumptions about future changes in drivers rather than by extrapolation from the past. Socio-economic and technological changes are likely to be the most important drivers for land use, with climate change having a smaller influence. The land use changes represented in these scenarios would likely reduce GHG emissions and enhance carbon sinks. These trends would be reinforced by small future changes in the climate, but large climatic changes are likely to cause net GHG fluxes to switch from being a sink to a source. Land use change will also be moderated by potential policy goals that seek to reduce GHG emissions from land and/or increase the size of land-based sinks. This includes strategies to reduce carbon and nitrogen emissions through increased efficiency, afforestation and biofuel production.     

河北省碳足迹及碳承载力的时空演变分析

[目的]碳足迹及碳承载力的时空演变分析是当前分析温室气体排放量的热点问题。[方法]文章采用2004~2014年河北省化石能源消费数据、土地利用结构数据以及经济社会数据,通过构建碳足迹模型,基于Arc GIS平台对河北省11个地级市的碳足迹、碳承载力、净碳足迹进行时空演变分析。[结果](1)2004~2014年河北省碳足迹由2.224 5亿t增长至4.792 2亿t,其中煤炭能源消费量占90%左右,唐山、邯郸和石家庄碳足迹值较高,分别占河北省碳足迹的33%、18%和16%;(2)2004~2014年河北省碳承载力由9 043万t增长至1.050 6亿t,其中林地碳承载力占河北省碳承载力的97%左右,西南地区农、林业发达,碳承载力相对较高;(3)2004~2014年河北省净碳足迹呈逐年上升趋势,由1.536 7亿t增长至4.236 5亿t,唐山、邯郸及石家庄净碳足迹较大,分别占河北省净碳足迹的40%、22%和16%;(4)除保定外,其他10个地级市的碳足迹压力指数变化强度均呈现不同程度的增强趋势。此次研究成果将为河北省未来制定温室气体排放量等相关政策的建设提供参考。[结论]整体来看,河北省碳足迹及碳承载力呈逐年增长的变化趋势,应加强温室气体的管控力度,减小碳排放给河北省带来的负面影响。     

Effects of land urbanization and land finance on carbon emissions: A panel data analysis for Chinese provinces

The rapid urbanization in China comes with several economic, social, and environmental issues, most of which are related to land use. This study contributes to research on the land–growth–environment nexus by investigating the effect of land urbanization and land finance on carbon emissions in China from 2004 to 2013 using the Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology (STIRPAT) model. Results show that land finance and land urbanization significantly affect carbon emissions. The rate of land urbanization contributes to the reduction of carbon emissions; however, it has less impact compared with other determinants. The effect of land finance and land urbanization on carbon emissions indicates that a local government’s willingness to lease land for revenue aggravates carbon emissions. Economic growth and industrial structure also influence carbon emissions. Furthermore, the land requisition system and rural land conversion market should be enhanced through the guidance provided by the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016–2020) to promote the diversification of land transfer, fully consider regional differences, and establish a distinct policy focus that can contribute to emission reduction and land use.     

China's changing diet and its impacts on greenhouse gas emissions: an index decomposition analysis

With increasing awareness of agriculture's contribution to global greenhouse gases (GHGs) and China's position as the world's top GHG emitter, there is heightened attention to the embodied emissions in China's food consumption. China's diet has shifted to include more fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy. Not surprisingly, GHG emissions from food consumption have also increased substantially. This analysis links China's food consumption with the emissions of food production industries in China and its trade partners to determine the effects of dietary change on GHGs since 1989. We utilise high‐resolution food production and emissions data to perform a logarithmic mean Divisia index decomposition to attribute changes in GHG emissions to the scale, supply structure, demand structure and efficiency effects resulting from Chinese dietary changes over a 20‐year period. This study finds that while countries supplying food to China contribute little to China's food‐related GHGs, demands for meat and dairy play a much larger role, driving up emissions. The overall scale of increased consumption of all food further propels growth in GHG emissions. Results indicate, however, that while food consumption in China more than doubles between 1989 and 2009 improvements in technological efficiency limit the rate of increase.     

黑龙江省建设用地变化对碳排放的影响

黑龙江省正处于城镇化快速发展期,主要表现在建设用地扩张和人口城镇化,这都将对黑龙江省的碳排放量产生重要影响。本文将利用STIRPAT模型,应用岭回归方法计量分析建设用地扩张和人口城镇化率对碳排放的影响。以黑龙江省1993至2012年这阶段的碳排放情况的进行实证研究,结果表明,建设用地扩张、城镇化率和人均GDP因素对黑龙江省1993~2012年碳排放具有增量效应影响显著,是导致黑龙江省碳排放持续增加的主要驱动因素。能源强度对碳排放具有减量效应,提高能源利用率是黑龙江省实现碳减排的重要途径。     

Increasing agricultural productivity while reducing greenhouse gas emissions in sub‐Saharan Africa: myth or reality?

The motivation for this study stems from two major concerns that are interlinked. The first is the decades long food insecurity crisis faced by sub‐Saharan African (SSA) countries which is still prevalent. The second is the negative impact greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture may have on future food production and which is likely to worsen the food insecurity problem. The conundrum SSA farmers face is how to increase food output through productivity growth while minimizing GHG emissions. To measure changes in productivity growth and GHG emissions, this study evaluates the agricultural performance of 18 SSA countries by utilizing the Malmquist–Luenberger index to incorporate good and bad outputs for the years 1980–2012. The empirical evidence demonstrates that productivity is overestimated when bad outputs are not considered in the production model. The analysis provides a better understanding of the effectiveness of previous mitigation methods and which informs an appropriate course of action needed to achieve the twin objectives of increasing agriculture productivity while reducing GHG emissions.     

储备花生油氧化稳定性及品质研究

研究了储备花生油的氧化稳定性及品质变化。结果表明，氮气体系中花生油最稳定，适于推广。氧化变质的花生油中脂肪酸组成总体变化很小，SFA和MUFA的含量稍有增大，PUFA逐渐减少。而添加抗氧化剂有利于提高花生油的稳定性。合成抗氧化剂效果优于天然抗氧化剂，复合抗氧化剂效果优于单一抗氧化剂。     

中国纸产品贸易的碳减排效应研究

以2012年中国纸产品进出口贸易的数据分离两种效应,运用材积源生物量方程与净初级生产力(NPP)法核算造纸原料贸易的碳减排效应,运用IPCC清单指南法核算纸及纸制品贸易的碳排放效应。研究结果表明:中国纸产品贸易的鲜明特点导致其对国内碳排放具有双重效应,一方面造纸原料的大量进口使中国减少对国内林木的砍伐,具有碳减排效应;另一方面纸及纸制品的净出口又增加了国内的碳排放,具有碳排放效应。中国造纸原料贸易的碳减排效应明显,达1 902.11万t,相当于总蓄积量为1.805 709亿m3林木的年均固碳量;而纸和纸制品贸易的碳排放效应并不显著,只有51.36万t;但总体而言,中国纸产品贸易具有显著的碳减排效应。     

碳税与碳税政策分析

近年来,随着全球自然灾害的频发,气候环境问题被越来越多的人们所重视。而CO2等温室气体的排放导致气候变化也逐渐成为公认的事实。各国在制定经济发展政策时必然面临巨大的气候变化挑战。纵观世界范围,当前通过市场机制控制温室气体排放的途径,不外乎分为两类:排放额的控制及排放物价格的控制。前者主要表现为建立碳排放市场发展碳排放交易体系;而后者主要表现为碳税的征收。在理论上,碳税通过发挥其控制和激励两大功能,通过经济手段减少CO2的排放;但在实际执行过程中同时也必须考虑如何降低征收成本,加强监管力度以及解决信息不对称等不可避免的问题。文章在学习参考国内外学者关于碳税政策研究的基础上,论述了碳税政策的理论基础、执行过程以及税收收入的分配状况,并分析该政策的利弊得失。     

Smallholder farms’ adaptation to the impacts of climate change: Evidence from China’s Loess Plateau

The impacts of climate change on agriculture in developing countries will depend on the extent to which agricultural production in those regions adapts to climate change’s influences. This study uses a whole-farm land use optimisation approach to explore climate change impacts, when including adaptation, on farm profitability, production and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the Loess Plateau of northern China. The results show that with adaptation activities, the losses in smallholder farm profitability caused by the climate change could be moderate. Declining rainfall results in land use changes that generate higher on-farm GHG emissions with the most economically beneficial adaptations. With 5 % or 10 % decline in annual rainfall, the introduction of agricultural carbon tax would generate substantial reduction in on-farm GHG emissions. With 30 % rainfall reduction, agricultural carbon tax is not likely to bring about considerable emission reduction. The economically optimised land uses are generally sensitive to potential changes. When rainfall reductions appear, there is a clear trend toward reducing cropping area and transiting to pasture. With 5–10% rainfall reductions, increasing agricultural carbon tax with same rainfall reduction leads to the expansion in cropping enterprises. However, with 30 % rainfall reduction, land allocations are not sensitive to agricultural carbon tax. When with declining annual rainfall, in the optimal enterprises more oats-pasture rotations are employed to reduce wheat dominated rotations. Besides land use patterns, adaptations through altering farm management practices are also necessary. The economically optimised sheep flock would be increased considerably with declining rainfall. Overall, policymakers are suggested to initial more educational schemes to tell smallholder farmers how to make the best use of available adaptation strategies and consider changes in climate when design and implement agricultural policy.     

三峡库区（湖北段）农业碳排放特征、驱动因素与趋势预测

目的 探讨三峡库区（湖北段）农业碳排放可为其制定低碳农业发展措施,农业碳减排提供理论依据。方法 文章基于2000—2019年三峡库区（湖北段）种植业和畜牧业的8类碳源数据,采用碳排放因子估算法对三峡库区（湖北段）农业碳排放总量进行估算,并根据STIRPAT模型及LMDI模型进行趋势分析与驱动因素分解,运用情景分析法对2020—2030年碳排放进行预测。结果 （1）化肥是三峡库区（湖北段）农业碳排放的第一大碳源,占总量的29.05%,其后依次是畜禽肠道发酵、畜禽粪便管理。（2）2000—2019年农业碳排放总量整体呈先上升后下降的趋势,其中在2014年达峰,总量为171.67万t,且当年的畜牧业排放量总体高于种植业。而农业碳排放强度整体却呈下降趋势,由5.37 t/万元下降至0.87 t/万元。（3）农业生产效率、农业生产结构及人口规模对农业碳排放具有抑制作用,经济发展水平则促进作用显著。（4）强化低碳模式下,2020—2030年预测得知农业碳排放强度将呈持续下降趋势,农业碳排放总量趋于降低,表明库区农业可实现绿色低碳和高质量发展。结论 虽然三峡库区（湖北段）农业碳减排仍存在压力,但农业碳排放量的负增长和碳排放强度的持续下降会促进碳达峰,服务碳中和,以实现“双碳”目标。     

Private property and Mennonites are major drivers of forest cover loss in central Yucatan Peninsula,Mexico

The role of land tenure and Mennonites as drivers of deforestation in the Central Yucatan Peninsula has not been empirically assessed. We evaluate different drivers and their relationship to forest cover change between 1986 and 2015 and assess how land tenure and Mennonite communities impact forest cover loss in the Municipality of Hopelchen, Campeche, Mexico. This study shows that forest cover loss has increased in the last decade (2005–2015), and that land tenure regime type is associated with this loss. Throughout the study period, statistical comparisons show rates of forest cover loss were significantly higher in private and federal property compared to forests in ejidos (communal property). Forest cover loss in Mennonite private property was also significantly higher than in non-Mennonite owned private property. The role of land tenure and the expansion of the agroindustrial production model as major drivers of forest cover loss in the region provide important insight into developing municipal land use plans and conservation strategies to reduce deforestation. Programs, incentives and policy directed towards forest conservation in the region that typically target ejido communities, will need to consider the growing trend of private property expansion within federal lands and work more closely with private property owners including Mennonite communities if deforestation reduction programs are to be successful.     

Quantifying the impact of farmers' social networks on the effectiveness of climate change mitigation policies in agriculture

To reduce agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, farmers need to change current farming practices. However, farmers' climate change mitigation behaviour and particularly the role of social and individual characteristics remains poorly understood. Using an agent-based modelling approach, we investigate how knowledge exchange within farmers' social networks affects the adoption of mitigation measures and the effectiveness of a payment per ton of GHG emissions abated. Our simulations are based on census, survey and interview data for 49 Swiss dairy and cattle farms to simulate the effect of social networks on overall GHG reduction and marginal abatement costs. We find that considering social networks increases overall reduction of GHG emissions by 45% at a given payment of 120 Swiss Francs (CHF) per ton of reduced GHG emissions. The per ton payment would have to increase by 380 CHF (i.e., 500 CHF/tCO₂eq) to reach the same overall GHG reduction level without any social network effects. Moreover, marginal abatement costs for emissions are lower when farmers exchange relevant knowledge through social networks. The effectiveness of policy incentives aiming at agricultural climate change mitigation can hence be improved by simultaneously supporting knowledge exchange and opportunities of social learning in farming communities.     

Mitigation potential and costs for global agricultural greenhouse gas emissions1

Agricultural activities are a substantial contributor to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, accounting for about 58% of the world's anthropogenic non‐carbon dioxide GHG emissions and 14% of all anthropogenic GHG emissions, and agriculture is often viewed as a potential source of relatively low‐cost emissions reductions. We estimate the costs of GHG mitigation for 36 world agricultural regions for the 2000–2020 period, taking into account net GHG reductions, yield effects, livestock productivity effects, commodity prices, labor requirements, and capital costs where appropriate. For croplands and rice cultivation, we use biophysical, process‐based models (DAYCENT and DNDC) to capture the net GHG and yield effects of baseline and mitigation scenarios for different world regions. For the livestock sector, we use information from the literature on key mitigation options and apply the mitigation options to emission baselines compiled by EPA.     

Sequester or substitute—Consequences of increased production of wood based energy on the carbon balance in Finland

Forests play an important role in mitigating climate change. Forests can sequester carbon from the atmosphere and provide biomass, which can be used to substitute for fossil fuels or energy-intensive materials. International climate policies favor the use of wood to substitute for fossil fuels rather than using forests as carbon sink. We examine the trade off between sequestering carbon in forests and substituting wood for fossil fuels in Finland. For Finland to meet its EU targets for the use of renewable energy by 2020, a considerable increase in the use of wood for energy is necessary. We compare scenarios in which the wood energy targets are fully or partially met to a reference case where policies favoring wood based energy production are removed. Three models are used to project fossil fuel substitution and changes in forest carbon sinks in the scenarios through 2035.Finnish forests are a growing carbon sink in all scenarios. However, net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will be higher in the medium term if Finland achieves its current wood energy targets than if the use of energy wood stagnates or decreases. The volume of GHG emissions avoided by replacing coal, peat and fossil diesel with wood is outweighed by the loss in carbon sequestered in forests due to increased biomass removals. Therefore, the current wood energy targets seem excessive and harmful to the climate. In particular, biodiesel production has a significant, negative impact on net emissions in the period considered. However, we did not consider risks such as forest fires, wind damage and diseases, which might weaken the sequestration policy. The potential albedo impacts of harvesting the forests were not considered either.     

Policy options towards deforestation reduction in Cameroon: An analysis based on a systematic approach

This study advances measures that can combat deforestation in Cameroon. It also looks at possible carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission reductions and the effects on gross domestic product (GDP) and employment based on selected baseline scenarios based on reductions in deforestation. A systematic approach of analyzing the drivers, agents, socio-economic context, political context, spatial context of deforestation and specific and general deforestation reduction policies is used. The final step of the approach is to verify the repercussions of deforestation reduction on CO₂ emissions, employment and GDP. Monitoring population growth and arable production through intensification of production is promising. The general policies that this study postulates are enforcement, legal adherence, specification of tasks and quotas, collaboration, forest licensing and monitoring. More specific policies could be within the reduction of emissions from deforestation and forest degradation mechanism (REDD+) as well as diversification of livelihoods, mechanization, use of fertilizers and intensive cattle farming inter alia. Reductions in deforestation will reduce atmospheric CO₂, employment in the forestry sector and the share of forestry's contribution to GDP.