Suchergebnisse

In order to understand the context for sustainable development policies it is necessary to understand how different rates of evolution and velocities of change within social and ecological systems affect interactions between and the co-evolution of those systems. Sustainable development policies will bear fruit only when we can discuss sustainable development not only of separate interdependent or nested systems in a global hierarchy, but also in relation to their widely varying, but interrelated rates and courses of development and evolution.

Die Produktion von Holzhackschnitzeln in Kurzumtriebsplantagen (KUP) ist ein relativ junger Markt. Die EU Agrarpolitik und das Europäische Emissionshandelssystem schieben diesen KUP (SRC) Markt an. Dieser Markt wird in den nächsten Dekaden stark anwachsen. Holzhackschnitzel erlauben es, fossile Energieträger zur Erzeugung von Strom und Wärme, aber auch zur Herstellung von Kraftstoffe für Automobile zu ersetzen. Der Markt für KUP greift in den Markt zur Erzeugung von Nahrungsmitteln und Futter ein. Landwirte und andere Stakeholder müssen entscheiden, ob sie in den KUP Markt investieren wollen oder nicht. Beispiele aus Schweden und Deutschland zeigen, wie unterschiedlich verschiedene Stakeholder ihre Chancen und Risiken im KUP Markt bewerten. Der Annahme, dass KUP eine umweltfreundliche und wirtschaftlich tragfähige Option sind, um den Klimawandel zu beeinflussen, fehlt der wissenschaftliche Beweis und eine Datenbasis, die eine verlässliche Abschätzung der Gesamteffekte auf die Umwelt und die Gesellschaft zulässt. In diesem Beitrag wurden Forschungskonzepte für diese Analyse geprüft und der Forschungsbedarf für die Bewertung von KUP Märkten dargestellt. Ein Ergebnis dieser Analyse ist, dass die sozioökonomische Forschung in KUP Märkten Transdisziplinarität erfordert, die sowohl die Forschungsfelder Ökologie, Technologie, Betriebswirtschaft, Volkswirtschaft, Innovationen, Stakeholderbeteiligung und soziale Effekte im regionalen, nationalen und globalen Maßstab integriert. ; The production of woodchips in short rotation coppices (SRC) presents a new market opportunity, which is strengthened by both the EU agricultural policy and the European emission trading system. This market will grow substantially in the next few decades. Woodchips can substitute for fossil fuel to generate heat and power as well as provide car fuels from biomass. The SRC market will interfere with both the food and feed markets. Farmers and other stakeholders in the woodchip market have to decide whether to go for the SRC option or not. Examples from Sweden and Germany show how different stakeholders along the production line including end-users and financial institutions value chances and risks in the SRC market. The assumption that SRC is an environmentally friendly and economically promising option that can contribute to climate change mitigation (for example Pieprzyk, 2009) is lacking scientific evidence and reliable data. An assessment on the total impact(s) to the environment and society is thus needed. In this paper research concepts are reviewed for a comprehensive analysis outlining a research agenda to evaluate SRC markets. One result of the review is that socio-economic research in SRC requires transdisciplinary work integrating the fields of ecology, technology, business studies, and economics with innovation, stakeholders´ involvement, and societal impacts on regional economies.

Lit.

Short rotation coppice (SRC) systems can play a role as feedstock for bioenergy supply contributing to EU energy and climate policy targets. A scenario depicting intensive arable crop cultivation in a homogeneous landscape (lacking habitat structures) was compared to a scenario including SRC cultivation on 20 % of arable land. A range of indicators was selected to assess the consequences of SRC on soil, water and biodiversity, using data from the Rating-SRC project (Sweden and Germany). The results of the assessment were presented using spider diagrams. Establishment and use of SRC for bioenergy has both positive and negative effects. The former include increased carbon sequestration and reduced GHG emissions as well as reduced soil erosion, groundwater nitrate and surface runoff. SRC can be used in phytoremediation and improves plant and breeding bird biodiversity (exceptions: grassland and arable land species) but should not be applied in dry areas or on soils high in toxic trace elements (exception: cadmium). The scenario-based analysis was found useful for studying the consequences of SRC cultivation at larger scales. Limitations of the approach are related to data requirements and compatibility and its restricted ability to cover spatial diversity and dynamic processes. The findings should not be generalised beyond the representativeness of the data used.