A livelihood in a risky environment: Farmers’ preferences for irrigation with wastewater in Hyderabad,India

Most cities in developing countries fail to treat their wastewater comprehensively. Consequently, farmers downstream use poor-quality water for irrigation. This practice implies risks for farmers, consumers and the environment. Conversely, this water supply supports the livelihood of these farmers and other stakeholders along the value chains. Linking safer options for wastewater management with irrigation could therefore be a win–win solution: removing the risks for society and maintaining the benefits for farmers. However, in developing countries, the high investment costs for the required treatment are problematic and the willingness of farmers to pay for the water (cost recovery) is often questionable. Using a choice experiment, this paper gives insight into farmers’ preferences for wastewater use scenarios, quantifying their willingness to pay. The case study is Hyderabad, India. Farmers there prefer water treatment and are prepared to pay a surplus for this. Considering the cost-recovery challenge, this information could be valuable for planning small on site wastewater treatment systems.     

Cost-effective reduction of NOx emissions from electricity generation.

This paper analyzes the benefits and costs of policies to reduce NOx emissions from electricity generation in the United States. Because emissions of NO contribute to the high concentration of atmospheric ozone in the eastern states associated with health hazards, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has called on eastern states to formulate state implementation plans (SIPs) for reducing NOx emissions. Our analysis considers three NOx reduction scenarios: a summer seasonal cap in the eastern states covered by EPA's NOx SIP Call, an annual cap in the same SIP Call region, and a national annual cap. All scenarios allow for emissions trading. Although EPA's current policy is to implement a seasonal cap in the SIP Call region, this analysis indicates that an annual cap in the SIP Call region would yield about $400 million more in net benefits (benefits less costs) than would a seasonal policy, based on particulate-related health effects only. An annual cap in the SIP Call region is also the policy that is most likely to achieve benefits in excess of costs. Consideration of omissions from this accounting, including the potential benefits from reductions in ozone concentrations, strengthens the finding that an annual program offers greater net benefits than does a seasonal program.     

Emission Impacts of Electric Vehicles

Alternative vehicular fuels are proposed as a strategy to reduce urban air pollution. In this paper, we analyze the emission Impacts of electric vehicles In California for two target years, 1995 and 2010. We consider a range of assumptions regarding electricity consumption of electric vehicles, emission control technologies for power plants, and the mix of primary energy sources for electricity generation. We find that, relative to continued use of gasoline-powered vehicles, the use of electric vehicles would dramatically and unequivocally reduce carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. Under most conditions, nitrogen oxide emissions would decrease moderately. Sulfur oxide and particulate emissions would Increase or slightly decrease. Because other areas of the United States tend to use more coal in electricity generation and have less stringent emission controls on power plants, electric vehicles may have less emission reduction benefits outside California.     

Cost-Effective Reduction of NOx Emissions from Electricity Generation

ABSTRACT

This paper analyzes the benefits and costs of policies to reduce NO_x emissions from electricity generation in the United States. Because emissions of NOx contribute to the high concentration of atmospheric ozone in the eastern states associated with health hazards, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has called on eastern states to formulate state implementation plans (SIPs) for reducing NO_x emissions. Our analysis considers three NO_x reduction scenarios: a summer seasonal cap in the eastern states covered by EPA's NO_x SIP Call, an annual cap in the same SIP Call region, and a national annual cap. All scenarios allow for emissions trading. Although EPA's current policy is to implement a seasonal cap in the SIP Call region, this analysis indicates that an annual cap in the SIP Call region would yield about $400 million more in net benefits (benefits less costs) than would a seasonal policy, based on particulate-related health effects only. An annual cap in the SIP Call region is also the policy that is most likely to achieve benefits in excess of costs. Consideration of omissions from this accounting, including the potential benefits from reductions in ozone concentrations, strengthens the finding that an annual program offers greater net benefits than does a seasonal program.     

Environmental and economic evaluation of bioenergy in Ontario, Canada

We examined life cycle environmental and economic implications of two near-term scenarios for converting cellulosic biomass to energy, generating electricity from cofiring biomass in existing coal power plants, and producing ethanol from biomass in stand-alone facilities in Ontario, Canada. The study inventories near-term biomass supply in the province, quantifies environmental metrics associated with the use of agricultural residues for producing electricity and ethanol, determines the incremental costs of switching from fossil fuels to biomass, and compares the cost-effectiveness of greenhouse gas (GHG) and air pollutant emissions abatement achieved through the use of the bioenergy. Implementing a biomass cofiring rate of 10% in existing coal-fired power plants would reduce annual GHG emissions by 2.3 million metric tons (t) of CO2 equivalent (7% of the province's coal power plant emissions). The substitution of gasoline with ethanol/gasoline blends would reduce annual provincial lightduty vehicle fleet emissions between 1.3 and 2.5 million t of CO2 equivalent (3.5-7% of fleet emissions). If biomass sources other than agricultural residues were used, additional emissions reductions could be realized. At current crude oil prices ($70/barrel) and levels of technology development of the bioenergy alternatives, the biomass electricity cofiring scenario analyzed is more cost-effective for mitigating GHG emissions ($22/t of CO2 equivalent for a 10% cofiring rate) than the stand-alone ethanol production scenario ($92/t of CO2 equivalent). The economics of biomass cofiring benefits from existing capital, whereas the cellulosic ethanol scenario does not. Notwithstanding this result, there are several factors that increase the attractiveness of ethanol. These include uncertainty in crude oil prices, potential for marked improvements in cellulosic ethanol technology and economics, the province's commitment to 5% ethanol content in gasoline, the possibility of ethanol production benefiting from existing capital, and there being few alternatives for moderate-to-large-scale GHG emissions reductions in the transportation sector.     

Assessment of the impacts on health due to the emissions of Cuban power plants that use fossil fuel oils with high content of sulfur. Estimation of external costs

Fossil fuel electricity generation has been demonstrated to be a main source of atmospheric pollution. The necessity of finding out a balance between the costs of achieving a lower level of environmental and health injury and the benefits of providing electricity at a reasonable cost have lead to the process of estimating the external costs derived from these impacts and not included in the electricity prices as a quantitative measure of it that, even when there are large uncertainties involved, can be used by decision makers in the process of achieving a global sustainable development.The external costs of the electricity generation in three Cuban power plants that use fossil fuel oils with high sulfur content have been assessed. With that purpose a specific implementation of the Impact Pathways Methodology for atmospheric emissions was developed. Dispersion of atmospheric pollutants is modeled at local and regional scales in a detailed way. Health impacts include mortality and those morbidity effects that showed relation with the increment of selected pollutant concentration in national studies. The external cost assessed for the three plants was 40,588,309 USD yr⁻¹ (min./max.: 10,194,833/169,013,252), representing 1.06 USD Cent kWh⁻¹. Costs derived from sulfur species (SO₂ and sulfate aerosol) stand for 93% of the total costs.     

Analysis of micronucleated erythrocytes in heron nestlings from reference and impacted sites in the Ebro basin (N.E. Spain)

The frequency of micronuclei (MN) in peripheral erythrocytes was tested for 59 heron nestlings (Ardea purpurea, Egretta garzetta and Bubulcus ibis) sampled at two areas (polluted and reference) on the River Ebro (NE Spain) and at its Delta during Spring 2006. Flow-cytometry analysis revealed higher (three- to six-fold) MN counts in samples from the most polluted site relative to samples from the reference area. Samples from the Delta showed intermediate values. Age, morphometric parameters (weight, tarsus size and bill-head length) and maturation status showed no significant differences among the different populations for each species; nor were they correlated with MN levels. The data suggest that elevated levels of MN in chicks in impacted areas reflected the chemical pollution of their nesting sites. The use of nestlings for this assay appears to be a convenient, non-destructive method to assess the impact of pollution in natural bird populations.     

Environmental implications of electricity purchase from independent power producers: a case study from Thailand

This paper analyses the effect on the environment of electricity purchase from independent power producers (IPPs) in the case of Thailand. The environmental implication is evaluated in terms of the net change in emission of air pollutants with electricity purchase from IPPs by a utility. The main finding of the study is that electricity purchase from a non-dispatchable IPP plant based on coal-fired generation would increase the net emissions compared with that without the purchase from IPPs. The study also shows that the lower plant factor of the IPP plant would also increase the emission of air pollutants. Furthermore, with non-dispatchable IPP plants, the total emission of air pollutants would increase, whereas with dispatchable IPP plants the total emission would decrease with the level of electricity purchases.     

Evaluating threats to an endangered species by proxy: air pollution as threat to the blue swallow (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Hirundo atrocaerulea</Emphasis>) in South Africa

Background, aim, and scope  

The blue swallow (Hirundo atrocaerulea) is one of the most threatened bird species in southern Africa. Among terrestrial birds, its plumage is known to be the most water repellent, an adaptation to foraging on the wing in dense fog. Despite this unique adaptation, the nesting success of the blue swallow at the Blue Swallow Natural Heritage Site (BSNHS) is lower during years with high incidence of fog. As the phenomenon is not observed at other nesting sites, we hypothesized that this is due to changes in the air chemistry at the BSNHS. In the immediate proximity of the BSNHS, plantations of exotic trees (e.g., pines and eucalypts), rich in volatile organic compounds (VOCs), are dominant features. In addition, air pollution from the Johannesburg area is transported with the surface winds and mix with VOCs released from exotic trees. Together with the high humidity and high elevation, these conditions may result in the formation of sulphonates. Sulphonates are strong detergents, and the presence of these in the fog could lead to decreased water repellence of the plumage. This study was performed in order to determine the occurrence and distribution of sulphonates in the BSNHS and to compare these with sulphonates formed in other locations in South Africa. Because the blue swallow is endangered, pine needles were used as proxy to detect formation of sulphonates.     

Electricity from fossil fuels without CO2 emissions: assessing the costs of carbon dioxide capture and sequestration in U.S. electricity markets.

The decoupling of fossil-fueled electricity production from atmospheric CO2 emissions via CO2 capture and sequestration (CCS) is increasingly regarded as an important means of mitigating climate change at a reasonable cost. Engineering analyses of CO2 mitigation typically compare the cost of electricity for a base generation technology to that for a similar plant with CO2 capture and then compute the carbon emissions mitigated per unit of cost. It can be hard to interpret mitigation cost estimates from this plant-level approach when a consistent base technology cannot be identified. In addition, neither engineering analyses nor general equilibrium models can capture the economics of plant dispatch. A realistic assessment of the costs of carbon sequestration as an emissions abatement strategy in the electric sector therefore requires a systems-level analysis. We discuss various frameworks for computing mitigation costs and introduce a simplified model of electric sector planning. Results from a "bottom-up" engineering-economic analysis for a representative U.S. North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) region illustrate how the penetration of CCS technologies and the dispatch of generating units vary with the price of carbon emissions and thereby determine the relationship between mitigation cost and emissions reduction.     

Crowded skies: Conflicts between expanding goose populations and aviation safety

We here review the collision risks posed by large-bodied, flocking geese to aircraft, exacerbated by recent major increases in northern hemisphere goose populations and air traffic volume. Mitigation of goose–aircraft strike risks requires knowledge of local goose movements, global goose population dynamics and ecology. Airports can minimise goose strikes by managing habitats within the airport property, applying deterrents to scare geese away and lethal control, but goose migration and movements at greater spatial scales present greater challenges. Habitat management outside of airports can locally reduce goose attractiveness of peripheral areas, but requires stakeholder involvement and coordination. Information on bird strike rates, individual goose movements and goose population dynamics is essential to understand how best to reduce the risk of goose strikes. Avian radar provides tactical information for mitigation measures and strategic data on local patterns of goose migration and habitat use. In the face of expanding air traffic, goose distributions and populations, these threats need to be integrated with other local, national and international stakeholder involvement to secure viable solutions to multiple conflicts.     

Effects of environmental methylmercury on the health of wild birds, mammals, and fish

Wild piscivorous fish, mammals, and birds may be at risk for elevated dietary methylmercury intake and toxicity. In controlled feeding studies, the consumption of diets that contained Hg (as methylmercury) at environmentally realistic concentrations resulted in a range of toxic effects in fish, birds, and mammals, including behavioral, neurochemical, hormonal, and reproductive changes. Limited field-based studies, especially with certain wild piscivorous bird species, e.g., the common loon, corroborated laboratory-based results, demonstrating significant relations between methylmercury exposure and various indicators of methylmercury toxicity, including reproductive impairment. Potential population effects in fish and wildlife resulting from dietary methylmercury exposure are expected to vary as a function of species life history, as well as regional differences in fish-Hg concentrations, which, in turn, are influenced by differences in Hg deposition and environmental methylation rates. However, population modeling suggests that reductions in Hg emissions could have substantial benefits for some common loon populations that are currently experiencing elevated methylmercury exposure. Predicted benefits would be mediated primarily through improved hatching success and development of hatchlings to maturity as Hg concentrations in prey fish decline. Other piscivorous species may also benefit from decreased Hg exposure but have not been as extensively studied as the common loon.     

Developing an automated risk management tool to minimize bird and bat mortality at wind facilities

A scarcity of baseline data is a significant barrier to understanding and mitigating potential impacts of offshore development on birds and bats. Difficult and sometimes unpredictable conditions coupled with high expense make gathering such data a challenge. The Acoustic and Thermographic Offshore Monitoring (ATOM) system combines thermal imaging with acoustic and ultrasound sensors to continuously monitor bird and bat abundance, flight height, direction, and speed. ATOM’s development and potential capabilities are discussed, and illustrated using onshore and offshore test data obtained over 16 months in the eastern USA. Offshore deployment demonstrated birds tending to fly into winds and activity declining sharply in winds >10 km h^?1. Passerines showed distinct seasonal changes in flight bearing and flew higher than non-passerines. ATOM data could be used to automatically shut down wind turbines to minimize collision mortality while simultaneously providing information for modeling activity in relation to weather and season.     

Acid Rain Emission Allowances and Future Capacity Growth in the Electric Utility Industry

While the new source emission offset provision contained in recent acid rain proposals would result in increasing utility costs over time, the demand for emission offsets from new powerplant units should be satisfied even under conditions of high future growth in electrical generating capacity. This is because the amount of emissions from new generating units will be small relative to the quantity of offsets that could be made available in the emission “allowance” market.

Under the President’s July 1989 proposal, most utilities would be able to reduce their emissions well below their allowance levels via fuel switching, the installation of control technology, or the use of other emission reduction techniques, in order to create more “headroom” for the construction of new generating units. Retirements and decreasing utilization of existing power plants over time would liberate other emission allowances for use by new units. Industrial sources could “opt in” to the acid rain program and provide allowances for new generating units as well. A number of provisions in the recently passed Senate and House bills would make still further sources of allowances available to offset emissions from new generating capacity.

Hoarding of allowances by utilities is unlikely to be a problem since allowances would be distributed to at least 88 utilities in 34 states, and many of these utilities would have the ability to cost-effectively free up more allowances through “overcontrol” than they would need to cover their own future growth. Even a relatively small number of utilities in a limited number of states would have the ability to supply all of the allowances needed to cover new capacity growth from those entities that could not otherwise provide their own offsets. At projected prices of up to $800/ton, the incentives for utilities to sell allowances would be considerable. Moreover, if hoarding did begin to occur, the price of allowances would respond by rising to higher levels and the incentives for utilities to sell allowances would become even more compelling, as greater opportunities would develop for reducing costs (and electricity rates).     

广州市城市生活垃圾管理系统规划

运用最小费用规划模型,选取运输费用以及各处理设施（包括垃圾焚烧、制肥、回收利用、 填埋和中转处理）的处理费用为因子,同时把经济收入作为负的费用从中扣除,对选取的三个规划方案进行了计算,得出了广州市市区城市生活垃圾管理系统处理的最低费用,并给出了市属8个区的垃圾量相应的处理设置。     

Supply curves for using powder river basin coal to reduce sulfur emissions

Supply curves were prepared for coal-fired power plants in the contiguous United States switching to Wyoming's Powder River Basin (PRB) low-sulfur coal. Up to 625 plants, representing approximately 44% of the nameplate capacity of all coal-fired plants, could switch. If all switched, more than dollars 8.8 billion additional capital would be required and the cost of electricity would increase by up to dollars 5.9 billion per year, depending on levels of plant derating. Coal switching would result in sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions reduction of 4.5 million t/yr. Increase in cost of electricity would be in the range of 0.31-0.73 cents per kilowatt-hour. Average cost of S emissions reduction could be as high as dollars 1298 per t of SO2. Up to 367 plants, or 59% of selected plants with 32% of 44% nameplate capacity, could have marginal cost in excess of dollars 1000 per t of SO2. Up to 73 plants would appear to benefit from both a lowering of the annual cost and a lowering of SO2 emissions by switching to the PRB coal.     

Aerobic plate count,Salmonella and Campylobacter loads of whole bird carcass rinses from pre-chillers with different water management strategies in a commercial poultry processing plant

Abstract

Salmonella and Campylobacter are significant issues for poultry processors because of increasing regulatory standards as well as public health concerns. The goal of this study is to report the effects of two different pre-chiller systems that utilize different temperatures and water recirculation systems on whole bird carcass rinsates. Both pre-chiller tanks were contained within a single poultry processing facility and operated at different temperatures and water systems. The incidence of Campylobacter spp. and Salmonella spp., as well as the aerobic plate counts on whole bird carcass rinses are reported in this study from each pre-chiller system. The results from this study reveal that there are significant differences in how microbial populations and pathogens change over time in each pre-chiller system. Furthermore, we identify that these patterns are different per system. Such data are impactful as it indicates that measuring carcasses within a plant must consider both temperature and water recirculation as it may prevent comparability of different lines within a single processing facility.     

Power to gas: an option for 2060 high penetration rate of renewable energy scenario of China

Replacing conventional fossil fuel power plants with large-scale renewable energy sources (RES) is a crucial aspect of the decarbonization of the power sector and represents a key part of the carbon-neutral strategy of China. The high penetration rate of renewable energy in the electricity system, however, implies the challenges of dealing with the intermittency and fluctuation of RES. Power to gas (P2G), which can convert surplus renewable power into a chemical form of energy (i.e., synthetic gas), can help handle this challenge and supply new energy carriers for various energy sectors. By modeling three potential 2060 energy mix scenarios in China, this paper aims to describe the possible contribution of the high penetration rate of renewable energy combined with P2G in the future sustainable energy system. Different schemes are listed and compared, and the results are used in a basic economic evaluation of the synthetic gas production cost for the P2G plants. Ideally, nearly 18 million tons of carbon dioxide would be recycled and transformed into methane (around 9.37 km³) annually in China. Considering a zero price for the excess renewable power and future costs of the components, the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of the final production of methane is estimated at 0.86 $/m³_SNG.

     

Electricity from Fossil Fuels without CO2 Emissions: Assessing the Costs of Carbon Dioxide Capture and Sequestration in U.S. Electricity Markets

ABSTRACT

The decoupling of fossil-fueled electricity production from atmospheric CO₂ emissions via CO₂ capture and sequestration (CCS) is increasingly regarded as an important means of mitigating climate change at a reasonable cost. Engineering analyses of CO₂ mitigation typically compare the cost of electricity for a base generation technology to that for a similar plant with CO₂ capture and then compute the carbon emissions mitigated per unit of cost. It can be hard to interpret mitigation cost estimates from this plant-level approach when a consistent base technology cannot be identified. In addition, neither engineering analyses nor general equilibrium models can capture the economics of plant dispatch. A realistic assessment of the costs of carbon sequestration as an emissions abatement strategy in the electric sector therefore requires a systems-level analysis. We discuss various frameworks for computing mitigation costs and introduce a simplified model of electric sector planning. Results from a “bottom-up” engineering-economic analysis for a representative U.S. North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) region illustrate how the penetration of CCS technologies and the dispatch of generating units vary with the price of carbon emissions and thereby determine the relationship between mitigation cost and emissions reduction.     

Profitable Solutions to Climate,Oil, and Proliferation

Protecting the climate is not costly but profitable (even if avoided climate change is worth zero), mainly because saving fuel costs less than buying fuel. The two biggest opportunities, both sufficiently fast, are oil and electricity. The US, for example, can eliminate its oil use by the 2040s at an average cost of 15 per barrel (200015 per barrel (2000), half by redoubled efficiency and half by alternative supplies, and can save three-fourths of its electricity more cheaply than operating a thermal power station. Integrative design permits this by making big energy savings cheaper than small ones, turning traditionally assumed diminishing returns into empirically observed expanding returns. Such efficiency choices accelerate climate-safe, inexhaustible, and resilient energy supply—notably the “micropower” now delivering about a sixth of the world’s electricity and 90% of its new electricity. These cheap, fast, market-financeable, globally applicable options offer the most effective, yet most underestimated and overlooked, solutions for climate, proliferation, and poverty.