Analysis of the sustainability of reusing industrial wastes as energy source in the industrial sector of Taiwan

The objective of this paper was to provide a preliminary analysis of energy utilization from industrial waste in Taiwan, a densely populated island country with high dependence on imported energy. The discussion thus focused on the status of industrial waste generation and its management since the year 2002. This paper also presented the updated information about the new/revised regulations concerning the governmental regulations and policies for promoting industrial waste as energy source as well as controlling the emissions of hazardous air pollutants from industrial waste-to-energy facilities. It showed that the main types of combustible waste in the industrial sector of Taiwan include pulp sludge, scrap wood, sugarcane bagasse, textile sludge and scrap plastics, which were being reused as auxiliary fuel in the utilities (e.g., boiler and incinerator). Based on their reported quantities, the energy potential and the environmental benefit of mitigating CO₂ emissions were also analyzed in the study.     

Environmental relevance and use of energy indicators in environmental management and research

Energy use as a single indicator or in a set of few indicators is often used in applied research in the building, transportation and energy sectors. However, the environmental relevance of energy indicators is seldom questioned. The relation between environmental relevance and energy indicators might seem obvious. Nevertheless, how this is obvious has not been thoroughly discussed. The aim of this paper is to investigate the environmental relevance of the energy indicator and discuss implications for its use. The approach is to express environmental pressure in different environmental impact categories and determine the contribution to these from energy use. Because not all impact categories are closely linked to energy indicators, the aim and context in which it is used must be apparent.     

Determinants of eco-efficiency in the Chinese industrial sector

This study measures productive inefficiency within the context of multi-environmental pollution (eco-efficiency) in the Chinese industrial sector. The weighted Russell directional distance model is applied to measure eco-efficiency using production technology. The objective is to clarify how external factors affect eco-efficiency. The major findings are that both foreign direct investment and investment for pollution abatement improve eco-efficiency as measured by air pollutant substances. A levy system for wastewater discharge improves eco-efficiency as measured by wastewater pollutant substances. However, an air pollutant levy does not significantly affect eco-efficiency as measured by air pollutants.     

Environmental performance evaluation of an industrial port and estate: ISO14001, port state control-derived indicators

This study integrates procedures of ISO14001 and port state control to establish environmental performance indicators (EPIs), specific to industrial ports and estates. Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT), an owner of Map Ta Phut industrial port and estate, was used as a case study. Twelve EPIs were developed to assess 5 environmental management aspects being success, awareness, determination, preparedness, and environmental policy coverage. IEAT's deficiencies in managing the environment were identified for each management aspect. At the end of the study, suggestions on how to improve IEAT's environmental performance were recommended.     

草坪与环保产业

近年来，草坪业在我国发展很快，草坪具有减尘，净化大气，杀菌，降噪，防止水土人和改善区域小气候的环境效应，随着对划坪栽种，生产和管理的不断研究，草坪业已逐步形成我国环保产业的一个重要内容。     

An energy efficiency program for Swedish industrial small- and medium-sized enterprises

Industrial energy programs such as energy audit programs and long-term agreements (LTAs) are one of the most common means of promoting energy efficiency in industry. As a result of the European Energy End-Use Efficiency and Energy Services Directive from 2006, the Swedish Government Bill proposed a national energy program towards industrial small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) using more than 500 MWh energy annually. The aim of this paper is to present the structure and design of the program, adopted in 2010, the logics in brief behind the structure, as well as an ex-ante evaluation of the program’s cost-effectiveness. The paper is aimed towards the part of the program involving industry, i.e. not the part involving companies within service and sales etc. The proposed design primarily includes a subsidized energy audit with some minor LTA-elements, such as the need to report results from the energy audit, to present a plan over which measures to conduct, and after three years present which measures that were implemented. The ex-ante evaluation of the program shows a cost-effectiveness of 0.25–0.50 Eurocents/kWh, yielding savings of about 700–1 400 GWh annually.     

A promising niche: waste to energy project in the Indian dairy sector

The dairy sector is known to have significant local and global environmental impacts; but it also has proven renewable-energy generation potential. This paper analyzes a specific niche experiment in the Indian dairy industry, wherein cattle waste management is carried out by a multitude of stakeholders. These include the waste collectors, local technology adopters, research institutions, multilateral donor agencies, the Indian government, technology suppliers and operation and maintenance teams who have managed an uninterrupted 1 MWe energy production over the past 4 years. This analysis uses the sociotechnical regime framework to study the interaction of social, technological, economic and policy-related aspects relevant to the niche experiment. The analysis shows a potential to contribute to the development of two complementing regimes—one related to cooperative waste management and the other related to grid-connected renewable-energy-based electricity generation. Key factors for a successful development are not only a long-term financing protection through government subsidies to cover higher capital cost and a preferential tariff related to energy throughput, but also the adaptation of technology, the embedding in the local cooperative structure and the removal of regulatory barriers.     

A life cycle impact of the natural gas used in the energy sector in Romania

The world's natural gas consumption continues to grow, increasing its market share of total primary energy consumption. Among the major fuels, natural gas is expected to provide the greatest increase in energy consumption in the world energy sector, due to its relatively low environmental impact and high thermodynamic quality. Natural gas plays a significant role in the energy sector because of its environmental qualities and energy. We analyzed the natural gas life cycle by using the life cycle assessment (LCA) to compare, from an environmental point of view, four sites of heat production by natural gas combustion. We determined the best site from an environmental point of view for a consumer and which stage (extraction, treatment, transportation, storage, combustion) of the natural gas life cycle pollutes the most. This study confirmed the utility of the LCA in the evaluation of the environmental impact in the energy sector.     

Minimising emissions and energy wastage by improved industrial processes and integration of renewable energy

This article provides an introduction to this Special Issue of Journal of Cleaner Production (JCLP), which contains thirteen, carefully selected articles from the 12th Conference, “Process Integration, Modelling and Optimisation for Energy Saving and Pollution Reduction” – PRES'09. This issue builds upon the multi-year co-operation between the PRES conference planners and the JCLP. The articles cover important subjects of increased efficiency in energy generation and usage and in improvements in industrial process optimisation. The first group of five papers focuses upon recent advances in emissions reduction and the resulting energy penalties. The second group of four papers deals with improving the efficiency and reliability in the utilisation of renewable energy, where hydrogen and biodiesel are the key energy carriers. The final group of three papers focus on process integration challenges of sustainable energy systems and upon the challenges of industrial/societal integration of sustainable energy systems into regional sustainable development planning.     

Environmental management practices in the defence sector: assessment of the Portuguese military's environmental profile

Environmental management practice in the military is a growing reality in many countries. The goal of this research was to assess Portuguese military environmental profile, as a first step towards evaluating environmental performance. This paper assesses how environmental practices have been adopted in this sector, based on a self-assessment by the services. A national survey was carried out, involving a representative sample of the armed forces and defence administration. Overall results show that the integration of environmental practices into the Portuguese military is quite new, although with a positive trend when compared with other public sectors. Among the three military branches, the air force has adopted the most environmental practices.     

Stepwise multiple regression method of greenhouse gas emission modeling in the energy sector in Poland

The energy sector in Poland is the source of 81% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Poland, among other European Union countries, occupies a leading position with regard to coal consumption. Polish energy sector actively participates in efforts to reduce GHG emissions to the atmosphere, through a gradual decrease of the share of coal in the fuel mix and development of renewable energy sources. All evidence which completes the knowledge about issues related to GHG emissions is a valuable source of information. The article presents the results of modeling of GHG emissions which are generated by the energy sector in Poland. For a better understanding of the quantitative relationship between total consumption of primary energy and greenhouse gas emission, multiple stepwise regression model was applied. The modeling results of CO₂ emissions demonstrate a high relationship (0.97) with the hard coal consumption variable. Adjustment coefficient of the model to actual data is high and equal to 95%. The backward step regression model, in the case of CH₄ emission, indicated the presence of hard coal (0.66), peat and fuel wood (0.34), solid waste fuels, as well as other sources (− 0.64) as the most important variables. The adjusted coefficient is suitable and equals R² = 0.90. For N₂O emission modeling the obtained coefficient of determination is low and equal to 43%. A significant variable influencing the amount of N₂O emission is the peat and wood fuel consumption.     

GATT的冲击及我国环保工业发展的思考

根据国外环保工业的发展现状和趋势,以及我国环保工业发展中尚存在的脆弱性,分析了我国加入国际贸易关税总协定(GATT)以后,对我国环保工业发展可能带来的有利条件和不利因素,提出了因势利导,迎接GATT的若干对策与建议。     

工业型煤的制备工艺及燃烧节能

工业型煤，作为人工合成燃料新种已在全球兴起并在我国推广。本文简要介绍了工业型煤的制备工艺，燃烧特点和节煤机理，特别在大气环境保护上，是一项综合利用煤资源的重大改进。     

Minimizing greenhouse gas emissions through the application of solar thermal energy in industrial processes

The analysis of industrial energy usage indicates that low temperature processes (20 ≈ 200 °C) are used in nearly all industrial sectors. In principle there is the potential to use solar thermal energy in these lower temperature processes thus, reducing the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels. Using the model of an Austrian dairy plant, this research investigated the potential for, and the economic viability of, using solar energy heat processes in industry.Some industrial sectors such as food, chemistry, plastic processing, textile industry, building materials industry and business establishments can be identified as potential sectors for the application of solar energy heat processes. When assessing the (economic) feasibility of solar thermal energy, the investigation of these industries’ energy systems has to focus on an integrated analysis of cooling and heating demands and to take into account competing technologies. Amongst these are heat integration, cogeneration, new technologies and heat pumps. Pinch analysis was used to investigate industrial energy systems and heat integration possibilities and proved to be a viable tool. Working from the basis of energy balances, Sankey diagrams, pinch analysis and environmental cost accounting, a newly developed investigation tool was applied in the case study of an Austrian dairy plant. This enabled a fast optimization of the system. Two different options for the integration of solar thermal energy into the production line were calculated, option 1 with a solar field of 1000 m² and option 2 with a solar field of 1500 m². Natural gas savings of 85,000 for option 1 and 109,000 m³/a for option 2 can be achieved, resulting in a reduction of 170 tons of CO₂ per year, or 218 tons for options 1 and 2 respectively. Based upon option 1, return on investment is realised after less than three years of implementation. This research thus, indicates promising technical and economical feasibility of using solar thermal energy for industrial processes and provides an important step towards sustainable zero emission production in industry.     

产业园区规划环境影响评价工作重点及对策研究——以峨眉山市其亚绿色铝业产业园规划为例

产业园区规划环境影响评价旨在从源头预防或控制产业园区的环境污染和生态破坏,实现规划实施的经济、社会与环境效益之间以及当前利益与长远利益之间的相互协调。本文以峨眉山市其亚绿色铝业产业园为例,探讨规划环境影响评价工作重点,以此寻求工作思路和对策。     

Integrated assessment of CCS in the German power plant sector with special emphasis on the competition with renewable energy technologies

The study presents the results of an integrated assessment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the power plant sector in Germany, with special emphasis on the competition with renewable energy technologies. Assessment dimensions comprise technical, economic and environmental aspects, long-term scenario analysis, the role of stakeholders and public acceptance and regulatory issues. The results lead to the overall conclusion that there might not necessarily be a need to focus additionally on CCS in the power plant sector. Even in case of ambitious climate protection targets, current energy policy priorities (expansion of renewable energies and combined heat and power plants as well as enhanced energy productivity) result in a limited demand for CCS. In case that the large energy saving potential aimed for can only partly be implemented, the rising gap in CO₂ reduction could only be closed by setting up a CCS-maximum strategy. In this case, up to 22% (41 GW) of the totally installed load in 2050 could be based on CCS. Assuming a more realistic scenario variant applying CCS to only 20 GW or lower would not be sufficient to reach the envisaged climate targets in the electricity sector. Furthermore, the growing public opposition against CO₂ storage projects appears as a key barrier, supplemented by major uncertainties concerning the estimation of storage potentials, the long-term cost development as well as the environmental burdens which abound when applying a life-cycle approach. However, recently, alternative applications are being increasingly considered?Cthat is the capture of CO₂ at industrial point sources and biomass based energy production (electricity, heat and fuels) where assessment studies for exploring the potentials, limits and requirements for commercial use are missing so far. Globally, CCS at power plants might be an important climate protection technology: coal-consuming countries such as China and India are increasingly moving centre stage into the debate. Here, similar investigations on the development and the integration of both, CCS and renewable energies, into the individual energy system structures of such countries would be reasonable.     

The organisation of social learning in response to perceptions of crisis in the water sector of The Netherlands

This article deals with responses in the Netherlands to a widespread perception within the water sector of crisis, rooted in an appreciation that former ways of managing water could no longer deal with contemporary and possible future events. The crisis and initial responses are first outlined, grounding the SLIM project experience in Dutch water management practice and policy. This leads to the research question formulated by the Dutch SLIM team, and the predictions it gave rise to. The research methodology, case studies and policy analyses at the core of the study are introduced. Empirical observations concerning four aspects of the change process are used to explore the predictions: conflict and confrontation among stakeholders; discovery of interdependence among stakeholders; development of social spaces where stakeholders could encounter each other in shared actions; and the role of facilitators and process leaders in helping stakeholders to go forward. The observations are analysed in relation to the initial predictions and the surprises encountered in the history of the cases. Knowledge management is identified as a key task in the social learning processes analysed. The article concludes with reflections on the role of the environmental sciences in the policy processes and research practices described.     

货币化可持续发展指标的评价

可持续发展指标是评价和监测可持续发展状态和程度的基础工程 ,是实施可持续发展管理的依据。本文通过几种货币化可持续发展指标的内容介绍 ,分析了货币化可持续发展指标存在的优缺点     

临沧市矿产业开发中存在的环境问题及保护对策建议

分析了临沧市矿产资源储量、开发现状及发展趋势,找出了矿产业开发中存在的土地压力增加、地质灾害及生态环境破坏突出等环境问题,提出临沧市矿产业开发环境保护对策建议。     

Transaction costs for carbon sequestration projects in the tropical forest sector

There is general consensus that carbon (C) sequestration projects in forests are a relatively low cost option for mitigating climate change, but most studies on the subject have assumed that transaction costs are negligible. The objectives of the study were to examine transaction costs for forest C sequestration projects and to determine the significance of the costs based on economic analyses. Here we examine four case studies of active C sequestration projects being implemented in tropical countries and developed for the C market. The results from the case studies were then used with a dynamic forest and land use economic model to investigate how transaction costs affect the efficiency and cost of forest C projects globally. In the case studies transaction costs ranged from 0.38 to 27 million US dollars ($0.09 to $7.71/t CO₂) or 0.3 to 270 % of anticipated income depending principally on the price of C and project size. The three largest cost categories were insurance (under the voluntary market; 41–89 % of total costs), monitoring (3–42 %) and regulatory approval (8–50 %). The global analysis indicated that most existing estimates of marginal costs of C sequestration are underestimated by up to 30 % because transaction costs were not included.