Abrasive Waterjet cutting (AWJ) presents many advantages over competing machining techniques, but several issues are related to the high volume of materials (and in particular of abrasive) used in the process.

In this study, the environmental impact of the material flows in the abrasive waterjet industry has been analyzed adopting a life cycle perspective in order to individuate which phases place the largest burden on the environment. Moreover, three alternative abrasives (crushed rock, recycled glass and synthetic abrasive) and three disposal practices (in-site recycling, off-site recycling and recycling as construction material) have been also evaluated to estimate the benefits that can be achieved if these could be used in place of garnet abrasives and landfilling.

The transportation of the abrasive resulted to be the phase that has the largest influence in every case and thus should be reduced as much as possible. For what concerns the alternative options, the usage of recycled glass and the in-site recycling of the abrasive were the two alternatives with the best environmental performances. However, crushed rock could be the best option for what concerns the global warming potential if carbon sequestration due to carbonation of silicate rocks is taken into account. Off-site recycling and recycling as construction material are good options only if the transportation to the recycling site can be reduced. Synthetic abrasive are instead found to have a much larger impact compared to every other alternative examined.

The transition to a sustainable future is one of the biggest, and most current challengestoday. It’s something that manifests, both political in terms of policies but also in theincreasing societal awereness regarding sustainability. The Paris agreement was adoptedin 2015 and aims to limit the global warming below 2 ◦C. Meanwhile large amounts of fossilfuels and raw materials are being consumed which furthers the issue. One way to limitits effect is to make use of the residual flows that’s being created. Unfortunally, it’s morecommon that theese residual flows are being released to the surroundings, often in the formof excess heat. One of the reasons for this originates in limited system boundaries whereactors solely focus on their own operation and do not explore the possibility of cooperationwith others actors. Previous research demonstrates that actors lack methods to evaluatepotential solutions with a systematical approach which leads to missed opportunities—especially for the utilization of underutilized resources—for energy efficiency. Thus thisMaster’s thesies aims to investigate the potential with excess energy and different waysactors can capitalize on it. Furthermore the study aims to present decision basis by applying a Multi-criteria analysis but also identify knowledge gaps connected to decisionmakingoverall and how the method can be used to reduce theese.

This Master’s thesis was conducted through a case study at Siemens Energy in Finspång,Sweden, where a Multi-criteria analysis was applied on their intermittent energyflow ofelectricity stemming from gas turbine testing. A literature study was used to determinewhich potential solutions that would be included in the method while a interview studywith employees on the focal company gave rise to the indicators that were used to evaluatethe solutions. The result showed that four solutions, hydrogen production, district heatingproduction, battery park and Direct Air Capture all fulfilled the demands. The resultfurther indicated that all four solutions had their individual strengths and weaknessesconnected to the three sustainability aspects and therefore the best solution depends onwhich aspect is valued the most. From an economical standpoint, hydrogen roduction wasthe most attractive while Direct Air Capture and district heating production were mostfavourable in terms of ecological- and social profitability. Although battery park was notconsidered best in one particular area, the analysis highlighted the fact that it can facilitatea higher effectiveness from the other solutions if implemented. Therefore it is in this studyrecommended to investigate the possibility to implement a combination of these solutionsto maximize the benefit and whether it’s possible to do so in conjunction with other actors.

It can be concluded that Multi-criteria analysis can be used to foster the utilization ofunderutilized resources by providing a systematical method for basis decision. To achievereal change though, it’s necessary that actors expand their system boundaries to includeresidual flows from other actors. Nevertheless, it must be underlined the importance thatevery actor strive individually to be the most sustainable they can be, only then can weachieve a sustainble future.

In environmental systems analysis tools like Life Cycle Assessment, strategic environmental assessment, cost–benefit analysis and environmental management systems, results need to be presented in a comprehensible way to make alternatives easily comparable. One way of doing this is to aggregate results to a manageable set by using weighting methods. In this paper, we explore how weighting methods are used in some selected Environmental Systems Analysis Tools (ESATs), and suggest possible developments of their use. We examine the differences in current use patterns, discuss the reasons for and implications of such differences, and investigate whether observed differences in use are necessary. The result of our survey shows that weighting and valuation is broadly used in the examined ESATs. The use of weighting/valuation methods is different in different tools, but these differences are not always related to the application; rather, they are related to traditions and views on valuation and weighting. Also, although the requirements on the weights/values may differ between tools, there are intersections where they coincide. Monetary weights, using either endpoint or midpoint methods, are found to be useful in all the selected tools. Furthermore, the inventory shows that that there is a common need for generic sets of weights. There is a need for further research focusing on the development of consistent value sets derived with a wide range of methods. In parallel to the development of weighting methods it is important with critical evaluations of the weighting sets with regard to scientific quality, consistency and data gaps.

The take-make-waste approach to resource management in human production and consumption systems is contributing to a variety of environmental and social problems worldwide. Additionally, as the world’s population and affluence increase, so do the negative impacts of poor resource management. Lifting the waste management (WM) sector into a new phase of development, which takes its lead from the ideals of Industrial Ecology and circular economy, is seen by many scholars and practitioners as one potential to assist in alleviating these impacts. While there are many studies on how more efficient inter-organizational resource management is (or could be) constructed, there are relatively few business development studies which have explored novel approaches (from roles to tactics) that WM organizations might operationalize toward more efficient resource management.

The aim of this thesis is to contribute to the development of knowledge and understanding of how the waste management sector can operationalize more effective and efficient resource management. In approaching this aim, two research questions guided the exploration of: 1) novel roles for WM and 2) support tactics for such roles. Grounded in the broader context of Industrial Ecology (IE) and Business Development, five studies were performed. Two studies, focused on the novel roles of inter-organizational resource management and high value secondary resource extraction, were performed through literature review and interviews, and market driver analysis respectively. In exploring support tactics, two design and proof of concept studies were carried out to investigate data analysis tools for inter-organizational resource management, and one long-term action research engagement project was coordinated to study hands-on inter-organizational collaboration tactics.

The studies highlighted that the Swedish WM sector holds some key capacities for operationalizing (and in some cases, is already developing) the novel resource management roles identified: industrial symbiosis facilitator, eco-industrial park manager, holistic facility management, and high value resource extractor. However, depending on the portfolio of services to be performed in such roles, several capacities may need to be developed or strengthened. Main opportunities seen for these roles were – staying ahead of market developments, and aligning activities with organizational goals. The main general risk related to these roles was insufficient returns on investment. Looking forward, the main enablers identified were policy leadership for more balanced market mechanisms, increasing use of external knowledge, developing long term partnerships, lobbying, stockpiling resources, and carefully crafting new business models.

The tools developed for strategically applying external information toward the identification of opportunities within new roles showed tactical potential. However, their implementation in broader development processes has yet to be fully validated. The hands-on exploration of change oriented collaboration, highlighted collective system framing and goal setting and face-to-face interaction as key activities for inter-organizational approaches within roles such as industrial symbiosis facilitator.

Throughout the studies, several novel roles were investigated. Each of these roles will need to be individually evaluated by directing bodies of WM organizations, and evaluated from the organization’s vision and strategy. If certain roles are chosen to be explored in more detail, they will need to be developed within full business models - addressing issues such as income structure, internal processes and capacities to be developed, and key customers. Through applying IE and business development concepts and findings, WM organizations have possibilities to translate ambitious visions into novel offerings.

Several waste management (WM) professionals see an ongoing shift in the focus of the industry, from that of atransport and treatment sector to that of a more integrated sustainable service provision and material productionsector. To further develop such transitional ambitions, WM organizations are increasingly looking toward interorganizationalresource network concepts (such as the circular economy and industrial symbiosis) as models ofhow they would like to create new value together with their customers and partners.This article aims to take a step in addressing uncertainties behind such transitions by analyzing barriers forinter-organizational resource management and in turn uncovering some potential opportunities and risks ofnovel offerings from the WM sector. Obstacles for developing innovative inter-organizational resource networkshave been identified based on studies of implementing industrial symbiosis networks. Subsequently, managingexecutives from Swedish private and public WM organizations were interviewed regarding the sector’s capacityto overcome such barriers – opportunities and risks of providing new resource management services – and howtheir organizations might approach the role of actively facilitating more resource efficient regions.Eco-Industrial park management and contracting out holistic resource management are some areas in whichthe respondents see WM organizations offering new services. In relation to such approaches, various risks (e.g.being cut out of investment benefits, or unstable supply) and opportunities (e.g. new markets and enhancedsustainability profiles) were identified. Additionally, it was seen that WM companies would need to makesubstantial changes to their business approach, becoming less dependent on flows of mixed materials forexample, if they are to become even more central value chain actors. To strengthen such approaches, it was seenthat the sector will need to find methods to strategically build strong, long term partnerships, expand upon andtake advantage of available knowledge resources (i.e. best practice technologies and regional material flows),and explore new business models (i.e. stockpiling, park management, or waste minimization). Additionally,working with sector representatives to argue for a more balanced market conditions next to primary productionshould assist the viability of new offerings in the wider market.

Even though it’s well known to mankind that our common resources are limited and that recycling is a key for a sustainable future; in reality we see few examples of true recycling where virgin raw material is substituted by waste. There are endless number of examples where waste is utilized to some extent without solving the core issue: reducing the need of extracting virgin raw materials. This article analyses some of the driving forces and inhibitors that explains why it’s so difficult establish secondary stock extraction although technology is available. The authors discuss and suggest possible ways for reducing the some of the main barriers.

The circular economy (CE) can drive sustainability. For companies to select and implement circularity strategies, they need to evaluate and compare the performance of these strategies both in terms of progress towards CE but also based on their feasibility and business outcomes. However, evaluation methods for circularity strategies at the product level are lacking. Therefore, this research proposes a multi-criteria evaluation method of circularity strategies at the product level which can be used by business decision-makers to evaluate and compare the initial business of the company, transformative and future circularity strategies. This multi-criteria evaluation method aims to assist business decision-makers to identify a preferred strategy by linking together a wide variety of criteria, i.e., environmental, economic, social, legislative, technical, and business, as well as by proposing relevant indicators that take into consideration, where possible, the life cycle perspective. It also allows for flexibility so that criteria, sub-criteria, and weighing factors can be altered by the business decision-makers to fit the needs of their specific case or product. Two illustrative examples based on case companies are presented to verify and illustrate the proposed method.

More and more people live in cities, cities that both present opportunities, in terms of potential sustainable growth and challenges, for example regarding insufficient infrastructure and waste management. There are several examples on initiatives to make cities reach their sustainability potential; one is to turn municipal organic waste, MOW, and sewage sludge into biogas and use it to produce electricity and/or heat or to upgrade it to biomethane and use it as a fuel in for example public transport or feed it to a gas grid.

This study has focused on the potential and feasibility of producing and using biogas/biomethane as well as the remains from the production process, called digestate, in Chisinau, the capital of Moldova. For the most feasible options an indication of the environmental improvement and economic performance was also estimated. The study included biogas produced from municipal organic waste, sewage sludge and methane collected at landfills. For the areas of use, electricity or heat produced from biogas was included as well as using biomethane in public transport or feeding it to the gas grid and to use the digestate as biofertilizer. Since multiple factors needs to be considered in order to adequately assess the potential and feasibility a multi-criteria approach was used for developing a framework based on an early assessment tool for biomethane solutions in the urban context.

In summary it is indicated that there are good conditions for biogas production in Chisinau with biogas production from sewage sludge being included in the ongoing rehabilitation of the largest wastewater facility and methane collection from the largest landfill historically being part of the operations and planned (although not confirmed) to soon be part of these again. However, the largest potential is for municipal organic waste where the main impediments relates to financial issues and to some extent legislation that indirectly favour short term landfilling. When investigating the possible use of the digestate as biofertilizer the outlooks are considerably less promising than for the supply side. Despite the fact that the law explicitly allows the use of digestate (both from MOW and sewage sludge) the lack of knowledge within the farmer community result in a low or non-existent customer demand. Regarding the possible use of biogas/biomethane it was concluded that electricity production is the most feasible option and heat generation placing as the second most feasible. Feeding the gas to the grid appears more difficult and the least likely option is for the biogas to be used within public transport. Overall it is in general technically possible to use the gas in terms of infrastructure and there is some demand, especially for electricity and heat. The biggest inhibitory factors are rather institutional since biogas in general is overlooked or not prioritized in the strategies leading to a shortcoming in economical instruments or funds and to some extent in the legislation.

This thesis is complemented by an executive summary with the same name, both in English and translated to Romanian.

In this study, we explored why urine recycling systems have failed to gain wide-scale expansion despite their high potential for food and fertilizer security. Additionally, we examined the future perception of urine recycling in Sweden and Switzerland, as these two countries are at the forefront of technological advancement. Along with identifying barriers, we also proposed pathways for overcoming those barriers and achieving the upscale. The analysis was conducted using the technological innovation (TIS) approach, which is technology-focused, i.e., revolves around emerging technologies. Additionally, the study provides a methodological contribution to the innovation systems research by employing the Delphi method in conjunction with urine recycling experts to enforce transparency and prevent bias in the analysis. For urine recycling to overcome its current challenges, actors must work collectively. There needs to be a combination of top-down and bottom-up efforts to achieve the upscaling pathways. Lobbying and knowledge provision are necessary to adjust the current regulatory framework in a manner that provides public and private incentives. For urine recycling to diffuse and break into the mainstream market, we must move beyond enthusiasts, innovators, and niche markets into the mass market (ordinary people); dedicated service providers can facilitate this process. Pilot projects have been found integral to urine recycling upscaling. Future work could conduct life cycle assessments on existing pilot projects to understand the environmental and economic performance of urine recycling systems when scaled up.

This article examines the implementation of the Swedish national environmental quality objectives and discusses what can be learned for the equivalent process for the set of global UN 2030 goals (SDGs), established in 2015. The empirical basis is a study on 50 large companies in Sweden and their use of these objectives in their policy formulation. The SDGs are crafted with a broader approach than the Swedish national environmental quality objectives. Therefore, the SDGs probably better reflect the agenda of the business community since they have a global character, cover the whole spectrum of important sustainability issues and provide a mutual agenda for the business community worldwide. More than 90 percent of the large companies in the study have explicitly committed themselves to the SDGs, only 1-2 years after they were published, whereas similar commitments hardly exist for the national environmental quality objectives, even 20 years after their establishment. A large majority of the large companies in this study know about the SDGs, have actively endorsed them, and started to adjust their activities accordingly. In the end, the results of these endorsements remain to be seen.

This paper is based on a study of the current sustainability management system landscape within the ABB Group and discusses the limitations and opportunities related to these systems and belonging tools. It also suggests a sustainability management model which covers both the “vertical” and “horizontal” directions along the value chain. The model describes how current management systems and tools can be better linked to the business strategy and decision situations to enable sustainable growth and profit while contributing to a “better world”. The main conclusions are that LCM needs to be explored further through the lenses of each company’s specific organization. Finally the role of a continual improvement procedure is considered the cornerstone for “true” life cycle implementation.

Environmental management systems (EMSs) are tools that can be used to steer and controlan organisation’s environmental efforts. This chapter focuses on standardisedEMSs, those that deal with fulfilling the requirements of the international standard ISO14001 (ISO 1996) and/or the EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) (EC 2001).These standardised EMSs have been applied for about a decade; the number of organisationsthat are certified in accordance with them worldwide is steadily rising and nowhas reached over 100,000 (ISO World 2007).Early EMS work focused on issues relating to implementation. Often, positive environmentaleffects were taken for granted. More recently, however, questions addressingthe effects of standardised EMSs have become more popular in the research literature.The extent and types of effects of a standardised system are critical issues from anenvironmental perspective. The information presented within this chapter will helpuncover and capture some of the nuances of the connection between EMSs and environmentalperformance. Important lessons learned as a result of this study include arelative lack of understanding of EMSs even after more than a decade of practical application.Additional insights include the extent to which EMSs are useful tools in achievingbetter organisational environmental conditions and identification of the importantfactors influencing the effectiveness and efficiency of such systems. While the focus ofthis chapter is on the use of standardised EMSs to reduce environmental impacts, themethods used in this study build on the author’s findings from several earlier studies—a meta-analytic perspective—and are summarised where appropriate. Some key strategicEMS issues addressed here include:

● Environmental aspects, their identification, formulation and assessment

● The scope of EMSs, including their relationship with product development

● Environmental policy, targets and objectives

● External environmental auditing

● Continual improvement in environmental performance

● EMSs and the supply chain

Så här långt i bokens tredje del har angreppssätt för att hantera miljöfrågor berörts ur olika perspektiv. Det har handlat om en historisk tillbakablick, övergripande strategier och produktutveckling, men också om systemperspektiv och miljösystemanalys. Boken har i många avseende samhällsfokus, men mycket av det som berörs har stor relevans för och inverkan på enskilda företag och andra typer av organisationer. De måste ofta inom ramarna för sin verksamhet och organisation hantera miljöfrågor som berör dem. Eftersom det kan vara nyttigt att försöka se situationen ur ett företagsperspektiv beskrivs i detta kapitel kortfattat hur miljöarbete kan se ut i dag i större svenska industriföretag.

Detta sjätte kapitel inleder bokens tredje del, som handlar om olika angreppssätt för att hantera miljöproblem. Kapitlet bidrar med en kort historisk översikt för att illustrera hur både synen på miljöfrågorna och åtgärderna förändrats över tid. Avslutningsvis summeras olika strategier för att jobba med miljöfrågor.

Boken ger läsaren kunskap om viktiga förutsättningar när det gällerföretags, och andra typer av organisationers, arbete med miljö- och hållbar utveckling. Det gäller både förutsättningar utanför och inom organisationer. Boken behandlar även relevanta strategier, metoder och koncept inom området.

I den första delen – Omvärlden – behandlas områden som främst påverkar företag och andra typer av organisationer utifrån. Inledningsvis beskrivs exempelvis miljöproblematiken och ”hållbar utveckling”. Därefter behandlas miljöpolitik, miljölagstiftning, de ekonomiska systemen samt etiska frågor.

I den andra delen – Hållbarhetsstrategiskt arbete med fokus på miljö – behandlas delar i miljö- och hållbarhetsarbetet som ofta berör hela organisationen. Först introduceras intressentperspektivet och därefter grunderna avseende strategiskt arbete. Vidare finns en kort introduktion till organisationsteori med en beskrivning av hur miljö- och hållbarhetsarbete kan organiseras och genomföras. Därefter följer två kapitel om ledningssystem, först ges en allmän introduktion för flera olika områden och sedan en mer ingående beskrivning. Den andra delen avslutas med ett kapitel om miljöarbete i olika typer av organisationer.

I bokens tredje del – Viktiga delar i miljö- och hållbarhetsarbetet – berörs andra ”områden” i miljö- och hållbarhetsarbetet, som kan vara mycket viktiga men ofta inte är lika övergripande. Det innefattar miljörevision; miljöarbete med fokus på produkter; miljökonsekvensbeskrivningar; riskhantering; samt marknadsföring och extern kommunikation.

Boken är i första hand skriven för kurser i miljömanagement eller miljöledning vid högskolor och universitet, men kan också användas för utbildningar på företag och inom andra typer av organisationer.

Sweden has ambitions to phase out fossil fuels and significantly increase the share of biofuels it uses. This articlefocuses on Stockholm County and biogas, with the aim to increase the knowledge about regional preconditions.Biogas-related actors have been interviewed, focusing on the demand side. Biogas solutions play an essentialrole, especially regarding bus transports and taxis. Long-term development has created well-functioning sociotechnicalsystems involving collaboration. However, uncertainties about demand and policy cause hesitation andsigns of stagnating development.Public organizations are key actors regarding renewables. For example, Stockholm Public Transport procuresbiogas matching the production at municipal wastewater treatment plants, the state-owned company Swedaviasteers via a queuing system for taxis, and the municipalities have shifted to “environmental cars”.There is a large interest in electric vehicles, which is expected to increase significantly, partially due tosuggested national policy support. The future role of biogas will be affected by how such an expansion comesabout. There might be a risk of electricity replacing biogas, making it more challenging to reach a fossil-freevehicle fleet. Policy issues strongly influence the development. The environmental car definition is of importance,but its limited focus fails to account for several different types of relevant effects. The dynamic policylandscape with uncertainties about decision makers’ views on biogas seems to be one important reason behindthe decreased pace of development. A national, long-term strategy is missing. Both the European Union andSweden have high ambitions regarding a bio-based and circular economy, which should favor biogas solutions.

Cement production contributes to extensive CO₂ emissions. However, the climate impact can vary significantly between different production systems and different types of cement products. The market is dominated by ordinary Portland cement, which is based on primary raw materials and commonly associated with combustion of vast amounts of fossil fuels. Therefore, the production of Portland cement can be described as a rather linear process. But there are alternative options, for example, involving large amounts of industrial byproducts and renewable energy which are more cyclic and thus can be characterized as relatively “synergistic”.

The main purpose of this article is to study how relevant the leading ideas of industrial symbiosis are for the cement industry based on a quantitative comparison of the CO₂ emissions from different cement production systems and products, both existing and hypothetical. This has been done by studying a group of three cement plants in Germany, denoted as ClusterWest, and the production of cement clinker and three selected cement products. Based on this analysis and literature, it is discussed to what extent industrial symbiosis options can lead to reduced CO₂ emissions, for Cluster West and the cement industry in general.

Utilizing a simplified LCA model (“cradle to gate”), it was shown that the CO₂ emissions from Cluster West declined by 45% over the period 1997e2009, per tonne of average cement. This was mainly due to a large share of blended cement, i.e., incorporation of byproducts from local industries as supplementary cementitious materials. For producers of Portland cement to radically reduce the climate impact it is necessary to engage with new actors and find fruitful cooperation regarding byproducts, renewable energy and waste heat. Such a development is very much in line with the key ideas of industrial ecology and industrial symbiosis, meaning that it appears highly relevant for the cement industry to move further in this direction. From a climate perspective, it is essential that actors influencing the cement market acknowledge the big difference between different types of cement, where an enlarged share of blended cement products (substituting clinker with byproducts such as slag and fly ash) offers a great scope for future reduction of CO₂ emissions.

Justification of the paper

Cement production is one of the largest contributors to global CO₂-emissions. However, the context and characteristics of the production and the cement products vary a lot. A significant part of the production must be characterized as rather linear, for example, to a large extent based on fossil fuels and involving material flows that are not closed. But there are also much more synergistic examples, involving industrial by-products, renewable energy, etc. Clearly, there are opportunities for improvement within the cement industry and it is interesting to analyze to what extent increased industrial symbiosis can lead to improved climate performance. This has been done by studying the production of cement clinker and three selected cement products produced within the Cluster West in Germany, consisting of three cement plants that are owned by the multinational company CEMEX. The methodology is mostly based on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), from cradle-to-gate.

Purpose

The overall purpose is to contribute to a better understanding of the climate performance of different ways of producing cement, and different cement products. The climate impact is assessed for “traditional”, rather linear, ways of making cement, but also two more synergistic alternatives, where the by-product granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) is utilized to a large extent, substituting cement clinker. It is also shown how the climate performance of the West Cluster has changed from 1997 until 2009 (the main year of study), and investigated how further industrial symbiosis measures could improve the performance.

Theoretical framework

To a large extent this project has been based on mapping and analysis of relevant flows of material and energy, where LCA methodology has played an important part. Theoretical and methodological aspects related to the fields of Industrial Ecology and Industrial Symbiosis have played an important role. The findings are discussed in relation to some of the key ideas within these fields. The paper generates insight into the methodological challenge of quantifying environmental performance of different production approaches and basically what CO₂ improvement potential cement industry has by taking industrial symbiosis measures.

Results

The results showed that the cement clinker produced at Cluster West is competitive from a climate perspective, causing CO₂-eq missions that are a couple of percent lower than the world average. During the twelve year period from 1997 to 2009 these emissions became about 12 percent lower, which was mainly achieved by production efficiency measures but also via changing fuels. However, the most interesting results concern the blended cement products. It was manifested that it is very advantageous from a climate perspective to substitute clinker with granulated blast furnace slag. For example, the CO₂-eq emissions were estimated to be 65 percent lower for the best product compared to “ordinary cement”.

Conclusions

Information and measures at the plant level are not sufficient to compare products or to significantly reduce the climate impact related to cement. To achieve important reductions of the emissions, measures and knowledge at a higher industrial symbiosis level are needed.

Biogas solutions can contribute to more renewable and local energy systems, and also involve other essential aspects such as nutrient recycling. From a theoretical feedstock perspective there is a great biogas potential in Sweden, but the development has been relatively slow as many biogas producers face challenges of different types. Among the many influencing factors, the choice of feedstocks (biomass) is of strategic importance. Within the Biogas Research Center (BRC), hosted by Linköping University in Sweden, a research project focused on feedstock has been ongoing for several years. It has involved researchers, biogas and biofertilizer producers, agricultural organizations and others. The main aim has been to develop a method to assess the suitability of feedstock for biogas and biofertilizer production, and to apply this method on a few selected feedstocks. A multi-criteria method has been developed that covers potential, feasibility and resource efficiency, operationalized via 17 indicators directed towards cost efficiency, technological feasibility, energy and environmental performance, accessibility, competition, policy and other issues. Thus the method it is relatively comprehensive, yet hopefully simple enough to be used by practitioners.

The main ambition, applying the method, has been to collect and structure relevant information to facilitate strategic overviews, communication and informed decision making. This is relevant for development within the biogas and biofertilizer industry, for policymakers, to define and prioritize among essential research projects, etc. This report presents some essential parts of this project, focusing on the multi-criteria method and results regarding ley crops, straw, farmed blue mussels and food waste (and stickleback to some extent). It clarifies how the method can be applied and highlights barriers, drivers and opportunities for each feedstock. Comparisons are also made. The results indicate that biogas production from food waste and ley crops is the most straightforward, and for straw and farmed blue mussels there are more obstacles to overcome. For all of them, the dynamic and very uncertain policy landscape is a barrier. In the final chapter, some conclusions about the method and its application are drawn.

This article departs from the perspective of Swedish regional transport authorities and focuses on the public procurement of bus transports. Many of these public organizations on the county level have the ambition to contribute to a transition involving the continued marginalization of fossil fuels and improved sustainability performance. However, there are several renewable bus technologies to choose between and it can be difficult to know what alternative (or combination) is preferable. Prior research and the authors experiences indicate a need for improved knowledge and supportive methods on how sustainability assessments can support public procurement processes. The purpose of this article is to develop a multi-criteria assessment (MCA) method to support assessments of public bus technologies sustainability. The method, which was established in an iterative and participatory process, consists of four key areas and 12 indicators. The article introduces the problem context and reviews selected prior research of relevance dealing with green or sustainable public procurement and sustainability assessments. Further on, the process and MCA method are presented and discussed based on advice for effective and efficient sustainability assessments. In the companion article (Part II), the MCA method is applied to assess several bus technologies involving biodiesel, biomethane, diesel, electricity, ethanol and natural gas.

Biogas production is essentially based on organic materials and biological processes; hence it can contribute to the transition toward a biobased economy. Biogas is a biofuel that can contribute to a more renewable and local energy system. In comparison with other biofuels, biogas is more flexible and can be produced from many different types of feedstock, including biomass containing various shares of carbohydrates, lipids and, both from primary and secondary raw materials. However, a significantly expanded biogas production is dependent on good business conditions, in turn related to societal acceptance and support. There are many factors that can make a biogas solution more or less suitable for both producers and the broader society. Among the many influencing factors, the choice of feedstocks (biomass) for producing biogas and biofertilizer is of strategic importance. But, to assess the suitability is complicated, because it is linked to many different challenges such as cost, energy balance, environmental impacts, institutional conditions, available technologies, geographical conditions, alternative and competing interest, and so on. Suitability includes aspects related to feasibility for implementation, potential for renewable energy and nutrient recycling, and resource efficiency. In this article, a multi-criteria framework, which is proposed in a companion article (Part II), is used to assess the suitability of four types of feedstocks for producing biogas (considering Swedish conditions). The assessed feedstocks are ley crops, straw, farmed blue mussels, and source-sorted food waste. The results have synthesized and structured a lot of information, which facilitates considerably for those that want an overview and to be able to review several different areas simultaneously. Among the assessed feedstocks, biogas production from household food waste and ley is the most straightforward. For straw and farmed blue mussels, there are more obstacles to overcome including some significant barriers. For all feedstock there are challenges related to the institutional conditions. The assessment contributes to the knowledge about sustainable use of these feedstocks, and the limitations and opportunities for biogas development. It supports more informed decision making, both in industry and policy. Existing, or forthcoming, biogas and biofertilizer producers who are considering altering or expanding their production systems can benefit from a better understanding of different choices of feedstock that are or can be (potentially) at their disposal; thus, identify hotspots, weak points, and possible candidates for implementation in future. This research is performed within the Biogas Research Center (BRC), which is a transdisciplinary center of excellence with the overall goal of promoting resource-efficient biogas solutions in Sweden. The BRC is funded by the Energy Agency of Sweden, Linköping University, and more than 20 partners from academia, industry, municipalities and other several public and private organizations.

This report contains information about a research project lead by researchers from Environmental Technology and Management at Linköping University in Sweden. It has been conducted in cooperation with staff from the global cement company CEMEX. The study has been focused on three cement plants in the western parts of Germany, referred to as CEMEX Cluster West. They form a kind of work alliance, together producing several intermediate products and final products. One of the plants is a cement plant with a kiln, while the other two can be described as grinding and mixing stations.

The overall aim has been to contribute to a better understanding of the climate performance of different ways of producing cement, and different cement products. An important objective was to systematically assess different cement sites, and production approaches, from a climate perspective, thereby making it easier for the company to analyze different options for improvements. Theoretical and methodological aspects related to the fields of Industrial Ecology (IE) and Industrial Symbiosis (IS) have played an important role.

A common way of making cement is to burn limestone in a cement kiln. This leads to the formation of cement clinker, which is then grinded and composes the main component of Ordinary Portland Cement. One very important phase of the production of clinker is the process of calcination, which takes place in the kiln. In this chemical reaction calcium carbonate decomposes at high temperature and calcium oxide and carbon dioxide are produced. The calcination is of high importance since it implies that carbon bound in minerals is transformed to CO₂. A large portion of the CO2 emissions related to clinker production is coming from the calcination process.

Both clinker and Ordinary Portland Cement (CEM I 42.5) were studied. However, there are other ways of making cement, where the clinker can be substituted by other materials. Within Cluster West, granulated blast furnace slag from the iron and steel industry is used to a large extent as such a clinker substitute. This slag needs to be grinded, but an important difference compared to clinker is that it has already been treated thermally (during iron production) and therefore does not have to be burned in a kiln. With the purpose to include products with clearly different share of clinker substitutes, the project also comprised CEM III/A 42.5 (blended cement, about 50% clinker) and CEM III/B 42.5 N-. (blended cement, about 27% clinker). To sum up, this means that the study involved “traditional”, rather linear, ways of making cement, but also two more synergistic alternatives, where a byproduct is utilized to a large extent instead of clinker.

The methodology is mostly based on Life Lycle Assessment (LCA), from cradle-to-gate, using the SimaPro software. This means that the cement products have been studied from the extraction of raw materials until they were ready for delivery at the “gate” of Cluster West. The functional unit was 1 tonne of product. A lot of data was collected regarding flows of material and energy for the year of 2009. In addition, some information concerning 1997 was also acquired. Most of the used data has been provided by CEMEX, but to be able to cover upstream parts of the life cycle data from the Ecoinvent database has also been utilized.

The extensive data concerning 2009 formed the base for the project and made it possible to study the selected products thoroughly for this year. However, the intention was also to assess other versions of the product system – Cluster West in 1997 and also a possible, improved future case. For this purpose, a conceptual LCA method was developed that made it possible to consider different products as well as different conditions for the product system. Having conducted the baseline LCA, important results could be generated based on knowledge about six key performance indicators (KPIs) regarding overall information about materials, the fuel mix and the electricity mix. The conceptual LCA method could be used for other products and versions of Cluster West, without collecting large amounts of additional specific Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) data. The developed conceptual LCA method really simplified the rather complex Cluster West production system. Instead of having to consider hundreds of parameters, the information about the six KPIs was sufficient to estimate the emissions from different products produced in different versions of the production system (Cluster West).

The results showed that the clinker produced at Cluster West is competitive from a climate perspective, causing CO₂-eq missions that are a couple of percent lower than the world average. During the twelve year period from 1997 to 2009 these emissions became about 12 percent lower, which was mainly achieved by production efficiency measures but also via changing fuels. However, the most interesting results concern the blended cement products. It was manifested that it is very advantageous from a climate perspective to substitute clinker with granulated blast furnace slag, mainly since it reduces the emissions accounted related to calcination. For example, the CO₂-eq emissions related to CEM III/B product were estimated to be 65 percent lower than those for CEM I.

A framework for identifying and evaluating options for improvement has been developed and applied. Based on that framework the present production system was analyzed and illustrated, and different measures for reducing the climate impact were shown and evaluated. Two possible scenarios were defined and the conceptual LCA model used to estimate their climate performance.

The authors’ recommendation is for CEMEX to continue to increase the share of CEM III (the share of good clinker substitutes), and to make efforts to shift the focus on the market from clinker and cement plants to different types of cement (or concrete) or even better to focus on the lifecycle of the final products such as buildings and constructions.

Information and measures at the plant level are not sufficient to compare products or to significantly reduce the climate impact related to cement. To achieve important reductions of the emissions, measures and knowledge at a higher industrial symbiosis level are needed.

Utmaningarna inom miljöområdet är stora och inte minst industrin arbetar intensivt med sin omställning för att både minska sin negativa miljöpåverkan och ta fram lösningar som bidrar till ett gott liv för alla. Boken behandlar möjligheterna att vända miljöproblem till möjligheter genom miljöteknik...[Bokinfo]

This paper aims to increase the understanding of how standardised environmental management systems (EMSs) affect environmental performance. Based on interviews with environmental managers from 18 different companies and two environmental consultants, we make clear how companies identify, formulate and assess their environmental aspects.

The results show that consultants have an important role concerning EMSs. Many of the environmental managers have deficient knowledge concerning their own EMS, since they cannot explain central EMS procedures. This can probably be explained by too much external assistance, from consultants, in combination with internal barriers such as lack of competence, time and motivation.

The characteristics of the companies’ assessment methods are presented, which among other things include which parameters are used and their relative weight. From an environmental point of view, it is positive that environmental parameters, in general, have a big influence. However it should also be noted that some of the companies use methods in which business parameters seem to dominate. Other important results show that most systems, overall, are facility oriented. In most cases it was difficult to understand the scope of individual aspects, for example, concerning what environmental impacts were considered. A majority of the environmental managers were rather uncertain about issues in relation to scope and system perspectives. Therefore, it is recommended that incentives be taken to increase environmental managers’ competence and to improve the standards, the guiding documents and the systems for their application.

Do standardised environmental management systems (EMS) lead to improved environmental performance? This depends on to what extent these systems lead to changes in important flows of material and energy, which for manufacturing companies, in turn, mean that the product development process is important. Consequently, it appears vital to investigate the connection between EMS and ‘Design for the Environment’ (DFE), i.e. the connection between these management systems and concepts that deal with environmental issues in product development.

This paper presents product-oriented environmental management systems (POEMS), including characteristics of existing models, experiences from projects where these models have been tested and experiences concerning the product connection in ‘normal’ EMS. It includes a discussion of important factors influencing to what extent DFE activities are integrated into EMS and/or the outcome of such integration.

There are many motives for integrating the two concepts. Firstly, DFE thinking might enrich EMS by contributing with a life-cycle perspective. If EMS encompassed products' life cycles to a greater extent, they would be a better complement to the often facility-oriented legal requirements and authority control. Secondly, EMS might remove the pilot project character of DFE activities and lead to continuous improvement. Thirdly, integration could lead to successful co-operation, both internally and externally. However, existing studies show that there is a mixed picture concerning the extent ‘normal’ EMS currently encompass products.

For standardized environmental management systems (EMS) to be environmentally effective tools, they should affect important environmental aspects related to flows of materials and energy, which for manufacturing companies are closely connected to their products. This paper presents how external environmental auditors interpret and apply important product-related requirements of ISO 14001 at manufacturing companies in Sweden.

The results indicate that the link between EMS and products is rather weak. Products are seldom regarded as significant environmental aspects and are therefore not within the main scope of many EMS, which are mainly focused on sites. However, all of the interviewed auditors require that some kind of environmental considerations be incorporated into product development, but these considerations are to large extent site oriented; how they are prioritized in relation to other factors such as economics and other customer priorities appears to be up to the companies.

The paper includes some recommendations to strengthen the role of products within the framework of standardized EMS.

Biogas Research Center (BRC) is a center of excellence in biogas research funded by the Swedish Energy Agency, Linköping University and a number of external organizations with one-third each. BRC has a very broad interdisciplinary approach, bringing together biogas-related skills from several areas to create interaction on many levels:

• between industry, academia and society,
• between different perspectives, and
• between different disciplines and areas of expertise.

BRC’s vision is:

BRC contributes to the vision by advancing knowledge and technical development, as well as by facilitating development, innovation and business. Resource efficiency is central, improving existing processes and systems as well as establishing biogas solutions in new sectors and enabling use of new substrates.

For BRC phase 1, the first two year period from 2012-2014, the research projects were organized in accordance with the table below showing important challenges for biogas producers and other stakeholders, and how these challenges were tackled in eight research projects. Five of the projects had an exploratory nature, meaning that they were broader, more future oriented and, for example, evaluated several different technology paths (EP1-5). Three projects focused more on technology and process development (DP6-8).

This final report briefly presents the background and contains some information about competence centers in general. Thereafter follows more detailed information about BRC, for example, regarding the establishment, relevance, organization, vision, corner stones and development. The participating organizations are presented, both the research groups within Linköping University and the partners and members. Further on, there is a more detailed introduction to and description of the challenges mentioned in the table above and a short presentation from each of the research projects, followed by some sections dealing with fulfillment of objectives and an external assessment of BRC. Detailed, listed information is commonly provided in the appendices.

Briefly, the fulfillment of objectives is good and it is very positive that so many scientific articles have been published (or are to be published) from the research projects and also within the wider center perspective. Clearly, extensive and relevant activities are ongoing within and around BRC. In phase 2 it essential to increase the share of very satisfied partners and members, where now half of them are satisfied and the other half is very satisfied. For this purpose, improved communication, interaction and project management are central. During 2015, at least two PhD theses are expected, to a large extent based on the research from BRC phase 1.

In the beginning of 2014 an external assessment of BRC was carried out, with the main purpose to assess how well the center has been established and to review the conditions for a future, successful competence center. Generally, the outcome was very positive and the assessors concluded that BRC within a short period of time had been able to establish a well-functioning organization engaging a large share of the participants within relevant areas, and that most of the involved actors look upon BRC as a justifiable and well working investment that they plan to continue to support. The assessment also contributed with several relevant tips of improvements and to clarify challenges to address.

This report is written in Swedish, but for each research project there will be reports and/or scientific papers published in English.

The work presented in this report has been financed by the Swedish Energy Agency and the participating organizations.

I detta kapitel beskrivs några betydande miljöproblem av global karaktär. Det handlar närmare bestämt om klimatförändringar, uttunning av ozonskiktet, minskad biologisk mångfald och användning av naturresurser. Syftet är att du som läsare bättre ska förstå vad som kännetecknar problemen, vad i samhället som orsakar dem, rådande trender och möjliga åtgärder.

Organic agriculture (OA) is increasingly viewed as an economic opportunity for farmers allover the world. This paper addresses the effects of OA in terms of income, vulnerability andpoverty alleviation in rural areas in developing countries. It is based on a literature reviewwith emphasis on two value chains: cotton and coffee, which both involve smallholders indeveloping regions, and growing organic markets, but differ in terms of value chain structuresand geographical patterns.

När avloppsvatten från sjöfarten släpps ut i havet påverkar det miljön negativt genom att bakterier sprids och näringsämnen kommer ut i havet. Utsläppen är koncentrerade till farleder och hamnar och där kan effekterna vara tydliga, även om utsläppen är små i förhållande till de totala utsläppen till havet.

‘To create the most resource-efficient region in the world’. This is the vision of Tekniska verken, the municipalityowned infrastructural company in Linköping, Sweden. It reflects the city’ s long-standing ambitions to be a ‘forerunner in climate and environmental initiatives’ and to support ‘business-driven’ environmental development, actively stimulating the development of a green economic sector. Linköping and the surrounding county of Östergötland are here used for discussing the development of the green economy in cities and regions.

For the last 15 years Västra hamnen (Western Harbor) in Malmö, and Hammarby Sjöstad in Stockholm have been the major flagships of Swedish international eco-city ambitions. These city development projects are presented both as leading examples of the conversion of former industrial harbor areas and of environmental adaptation of densely built urban environments. Western Harbor is a centrally located former shipyard area which, since the end of the 1990s, has developed into a mixed city area for housing, schools, offices, shops and other workplaces as well as for recreational areas with beaches, parks and yacht harbors. Since its first phase, part of a housing expo in 2001, it has attracted international interest for its dense architecture, bold energy goals based on varied local renewable energy production, household waste systems, green and blue structures, and dialogue processes. By 2031, when the area is completed, it is expected to be the home for 25,000 people and 25,000 workplaces. In 2014, there were 7,300 inhabitants and more than 12,000 work places in Western Harbor, already twice of the work force of the former shipyard at its height.

Handel med utsläppsrätter under ett fastställt ”tak” av totalautsläpp som efterhand sänks, har i en del regioner i världenvisat sig vara en både kostnadseffektiv och framgångsrikstrategi för att minska luftföroreningarna. Frågan är om utsläppshandelskulle kunna vara ett effektivt sätt för att minskasjöfartens utsläpp i Europa eller Östersjöregionen?

Hamnarna kan spela en viktig roll för att minska sjöfartensutsläpp i havet. Reglerna för fartygens avfallsdumpning harskärpts och i Östersjöområdet har det länge funnits en överenskommelseom att fartygen ska kunna lämna sitt avfall ihamn utan extra avgift. I praktiken låter dock de stora förbättringarnavänta på sig.

Kryssningssjöfarten ger växande inkomster för kuststäderna,men innebär också ökad påverkan på miljön i Östersjön och dess hamnar. Trots att branschen åtagit sig att sluta släppa utavloppsvatten till sjöss lämnar bara var tredje kryssningsfartygsitt avfallsvatten vid hamnbesök. Dessutom är delar av fartygsflottani stort behov av förbättrad miljöprestanda.

Landfilling waste material is still one of the most common methods to take care of waste in a big part of the world. Gaborone, the capital of Botswana located in the southern part of Africa is no different in this way. The major part of all waste is landfilled in Gaborone and there is only a minor part of all collected material that is recycled. One solution that earlier studies suggest is to build a transfer and recycling station in the city of Gaborone that can contribute to a more sustainable waste management. This study aims to identify the major waste streams of recyclable waste and also the major stakeholders that are active in this area through an exploratory study involving interviews, a workshop and a survey. The result of this thesis can hopefully assist in the preparations for such a transfer station. The conclusions of this study are many and contains of both hard facts and also loose ends that can contribute to pursue further studies. The first important result is that all the waste collection companies transports everything they collects to a landfill and it is only recycling organizations that are working with collection and recycling in Gaborone. These recycling organizations are a few but smaller compared to the waste collection companies in collected amounts of material. Besides these collection organizations, Gaborone City Council, the local municipality works with collection of household waste and the collaboration between these three groups that operates in the same environment is very poor. All the interviewed stakeholders showed a positive interest in the transfer and recycling station but there is only a small part of the commercial business in Gaborone that believes in a more serious waste management than landfilling. Despite that one major shopping mall actually sort out recyclables and saves 30% in waste management costs thanks to that. Another issue is the prevailing cultural contradictions that is obvious among the organizations in Gaborone. The last two bigger issues is the tremendously dull political bureaucracy that is appearing in Botswana and also that voices are raised that corruption is great beneath the surface.

In Sweden, the available water resources have for long been rich and the water usage in household has seemingly not had any limitations other than common sense. But today challenges arise with rapid growth of cities, which transfers water extraction from sparsely spread water sources in rural areas to mutual supplies near the cities, and the need for actions to secure a long-term water supply have increased. The responsibility for a secure water supply is obligated Swedish municipalities and since 75 % of the municipal water is used by households the housing sector has become a motivated sector for further studies. There is presently plenty of water saving tips available for households but not very much that regard the possibility for the municipality to contribute to the actions being commenced. This study aimed to fill the current knowledge gap between available theory and needed practicesHence, the method of choice was to establish a portfolio of available measures that municipalities can use for operational planning, but also to develop and discuss important pointers and choices that municipalities can recognize and make use of when prioritizing their actions. The study approached the issue with a system perspective and the idea that water use in households is a result of a variety of factors within the surrounding society, the residence and the residents themselves. To take into account the many change opportunities in this system two perspectives was applied: top-down and bottom-up. The first implying a theoretical review of available tools and policies for municipalities to use and the latter an empirical study on obstacles and driving forces on household levels.With literature studies and interviews with individuals, housing associations, housing companies and a municipal water supplier possibilities and challenges could be concluded. For instance, the study shows that the basic principle of water being a public resource means that measures such as pricing of the water and outlet restrictions faces challenges in legislation and social acceptance, while measures that builds knowledge of consumption and the importance of lowering it (for example utilizing campaigns and feedback) are rather easy to implement. Other challenges is that individual water use is difficult to measure and saving potentials tricky to estimate since they vary with all those factors in the system. On the other hand the system itself is moving in the right direction of a more efficient water use, implying that municipalities have the opportunity to utilize synergy and cooperate with other involved actors. The study also show that municipalities have many important choices to make when designing their course of actions. For example the measures chosen can be economical, administrative or informative in their character; be antecedent or consequential; and involve different groups of actors and water users.The study provides a good foundation for municipalities to take on an active work with efficient water use in households but it also highlights that there are other sectors such as agriculture and industries that need to act in the matter since they share the Swedish water with the municipalities.

The purpose of this master thesis is to assess the potential from a joint venture between Tekniska Verken and greenhouses. The goal is to, through industrial symbiosis, create a resource-efficient solution in which Tekniska Verken’s facilities can improve their environmental performance while the greenhouse’s climate impact is reduced.

Tekniska Verken has excess heat in their facilities. In 2007 Gärstad- and Kraftvärmeverket had 54 GWh excess heat. The largest quantity of excess heat occur during the summer when the demand for heat in the district heating system is the lowest. The excess heat during the summer reached a high level as 25MW.

In a few years, Swedish Biogas’s plant in Linköping will have an excess heat of about 26 GWh per year. The effect will then be 4 MW during the winter and 2 MW during the summer. The amount of carbon dioxide released from the biogas plant is 16 000 tons a year resulting in a flow of 1.8 tons per hour. The biogas plant in Linköping produces 45 000 tons of bio-fertilizer a year.

Vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs and lettuces are grown in greenhouses thrives best at temperatures of 15-26 ˚ C. During the day, the temperature should be slightly higher than during the night. In order to enhance growth of the plants, carbon dioxide can be added. In strong light and warm climates, carbon dioxide concentration can be increased from 375 ppm to 1200 ppm. The energy demand for tomato cultivation is somewhere between 350-550 kWh per square meter and year. The power requirement varies between 200 and 300 W per square meter depending on plant location and the house insulation. The carbon dioxide supply is 7-20 grams per square meter greenhouse.

The excess heat from Tekniska Verken’s facilities is enough to support a traditional greenhouse with the size of two hectares. The greenhouse has its lowest heat demand in the summer, which has the effect that only a small portion of excess heat from Gärstad- and Kraftvärmeverket can be used. The amount of excess heat from the biogas plant is highest in the winter and slightly lower in the summer, making it well suited for a match with the greenhouse. The amount of carbon dioxide is enough to meet the demand of a greenhouse with an area of 9 hectares. It could potentially be possible to use bio-manure as fertilizer in the greenhouse. However, further studies should be conducted before this can be assured.

Tekniska Verken is investigating how a joint venture with the company Plantagon could be set up. Plantagon together with Sweco has developed an innovative cultivation concept in which plants are grown in levels in a sphere-shaped greenhouse. To verify the data on energy and power needs given by Sweco, and to get an idea of the parameters that affect greenhouse climate, calculations have been performed. The factors taken into account in the calculations are the heat conduction, convection, solar radiation, ventilation, dehumidification and the use of water. To see how the power requirements vary throughout the year, the calculations have been repeated for every month. The excess heat from Tekniska Verken is more than enough to cover the greenhouse’s heat demand.

In order to estimate how much Tekniska Verken could reduce a greenhouse cultivation’s climate impact, six different scenarios is set. Using an existing life cycle analysis of Swedish tomato cultivation the carbon dioxide emission per kilogram of tomatoes for the different scenarios were calculated and compared. Two of the scenarios are linked to Tekniska Verken. One scenario is traditional greenhouse cultivation and the other is Plantagon greenhouse. A traditional greenhouse cultivation which is provided with resources from Tekniska Verken and is locally producing vegetables has a smaller carbon footprint than average greenhouse cultivation. The production of 78 kg of tomatoes in that greenhouse corresponds to the same carbon footprint as 1 kilogram tomatoes from average greenhouse cultivation. Plantagon greenhouse can similarly produce 7 kilograms of tomatoes in the same climate impact as 1 kilogram of tomatoes from average greenhouse cultivation.

By using excess heat, carbon dioxide and bio-manure from Tekniska Verken to power the greenhouse, a system solution with low environmental impact is created. Previously not used resources will have a sector of application, which increases the environmental performance of the production facilities. The produced vegetables will get a lower environmental impact and could, for example be climate certified and sold as locally produced in the Linköping area. By avoiding long and expensive transports and to be able to sell vegetables at a higher price increases the profits for cultivation company.

Human actions are significantly affecting natural environments from local to global scales. At the same time, our current and future well-being is not decoupled from the continuous function of the natural ecosystems. An emerging issue, from an anthropocentric point of view, is then under what conditions the ecosystems will be able to continue delivering services that we as humans benefit from. A concept within the theory of social-ecological resilience that deals with this issue is thresholds.

This thesis addresses how the concept of thresholds can be operationalized in a local authority and what gains and challenges that could entail for strategic planning in the municipality. The thesis also addresses how the operationalization of thresholds could benefit from a standardized Environmental Management System (EMS) in a local authority, and if there are any difficulties in doing so. My research questions are addressed by studying Eskilstuna municipality, a local authority in Sweden that uses both an EMS and is part of an on-going resilience assessment in collaboration with Stockholm Resilience Centre. The studied case and issues described above are approached interdisciplinary by using literature and document studies, participant observations, a survey, and semi-structured interviews with actors at the municipality.

My research shows that thresholds potentially could be operationalized in a local authority either through strategic action plans, or as a way of constructing scenarios in comprehensive planning. Both ways of operationalizing thresholds need to occur in early stages of strategic planning. The thesis shows that thresholds could entail a potential comprehensive gain for strategic planning by providing an argument as to why it is important that certain development trajectories within the municipality are changed. The results also show synergistic effects between the EMS and thresholds in the sense that the EMS could systematize the implementation of overarching strategic plans, influenced by the concept of thresholds, in the municipality’s organization. Challenges in using thresholds in a local authority related mainly to the issues of quantifying thresholds, and to a tension between the different system boundaries suggested by resilience theory and continuous improvement in an EMS.

Historically, the Swedish heat market has been dominated by district heating, which basically has been the only cost effective option where it’s available. Lately, however, the situation has begun to change, partly because of the increased efficiency of heat pumps, but also due to changes in energy policies and increased customer demands - which has led to a more competitive heating market. This study aims to quantitatively and qualitatively analyze the competitiveness of district heating compared to alternative heating technologies, focusing on three segments; apartment buildings, public facilities and other premises.

After an initial market analysis, heat pumps in combination with electricity or district heating as peak load, as well as pellets in combination with RME, were identified as the most competitive alternatives to district heating. The estimated life cycle cost of the heating systems was then calculated for a number of facilities, as a function of its energy needs and utilization time. These facilities were chosen based on consumption statistics from Vattenfall. Furthermore, several interviews with industry experts were conducted, in parallel with an inquiry that was addressed to energy and climate advisers in Sweden. The survey aimed to get an up-to-date status report of property owners' views on the heat market and thus contribute to the qualitative analysis.

The result shows, given the assumptions that the authors find reasonable, that there are minor differences between district heating and its competition if viewed from a cost perspective only. For a typical apartment building, district heating is slightly more beneficial, but for a typical public facility/other premise geothermal heat is a marginally cheaper option. Exhaust air heat pump with district heating as peak load is in both cases a cost effective option. However, the sensitivity analysis shows that the life cycle cost can differ by more than a factor of 2,5 for all heating systems depending on what assumptions are made.

Hence, the choice of heating system is from the property owner's perspective closely related to perceived risk and the extent to which trust towards the heat supplier exists. Effortless and reliable operations appear to be the most important factor besides costs for all customer types. Also, there is uncertainity about future price development among all segments, which can lead to impaired calculations. Thus, the customers’ trust for the existing heat distributor, as well as the relationship between them, may fundamentally affect the choice of heating system. A high investment cost is a crucial barrier since it carries a higher risk while also competing with other efficiency measures about the same budget. Public facility owners are keen about the environmental aspects while this question is of less importance for apartment buildings owners. It may be of importance for other premise owners depending on the owner.

In summary, it’s difficult to determine the most competitive heating system since the cost effectiveness for all heating systems can vary a lot depending on the assumptions. However, this study indicates that a power based price model will strengthen the competitiveness for district heating among apartment buildings. Among public facilities and other premises it will become more vulnerable to other heating technologies, especially to geological heat pumps.

To stay competitive it’s important for district heating distributors to be transparent and clear in the communication with their customers, particularly in regards of price development. In the long term it may be necessary to include more than district heating in their offer, for example support in energy efficiency measures, an environmentally certified heat supply or an offer of guaranteed indoor- comfort.

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One of the greatest challenges in today’s society is to ensure sustainable development, which was included in the UN:s 7th millennium goal with target date 2015. The Baltic Sea is an extra sensitive inland sea with a threatened biodiversity and widespread eutrophication problems. In 2001 Helcom, a cooperation organization for all Baltic Sea countries, gave the recommendation to prohibit discharge of sewage from pleasure craft as a step to limit the input of nutrients to the Baltic Sea. The 1st of April 2015 the prohibition was introduced in Sweden. In the following months the prohibition got a lot of attention in media and many people commented upon it. From April to October 2015, Transportstyrelsen received 182 notifications about deficiencies in ports’ reception of sewage.

This study aims at evaluating the prohibitions’ contribution to sustainable development, examining the owners of pleasure craft’s view of the sewage prohibition and to come up with improvement proposals in order to make it easier for pleasure craft owners to follow the prohibition. The study was conducted with a combination of different methods. The main part consisted of qualitative interviews with pleasure craft owners. As a complement, a web questionnaire was distributed to 109 persons. The response rate was estimated to 92 percent, which highlights the great intrest to participate in the study. The notifications that were reported by Transportstyrelsen’s web form were compiled as well. The authors have also participated in seminars with different actors.

The results of the study shows that the majority of the pleasure craft owners thought that the prohibition was correct and the principle of not emitting sewage in the Baltic Sea was appropriate. According to the web questionnaire 64 of 99 people would empty the septic tank of the boat in the sea if there was no functioning emptying equipment in their route. This was also reflected in the improvement proposals where the most common proposals were to expand the network of emptying equipment and to ensure that the existing stations are in operation. The pleasure craft owners stated several arguments both for and against the prohibition and also commented on the formation of the prohibition. Two common arguments with the prohibition were the importance of taking responsibility of your own emissions and the sanitary inconvenience in bathing in the same water as someone is discharging sewage in. Three common counterarguments were that regulations for other actors as agriculture, industries and municipal overflow outlets should be introduced before regulations for pleasure craft owners, that the sewage is spread out in a large amount of water and that boating should stand for freedom.

The prohibition can contribute to sustainable development both from the social, economic and ecological dimensions despite that the emissions of nutrients from the pleasure boats represent a small proportion of the total amount of emissions. Several ecosystem services of the Baltic Sea are threatened by eutrophication, for example food production, biodiversity and aesthetic values. In the writers opinion thereby all economically reasonable actions are motivated from an ecosystem service perspective not to risk the possibility for future generations to fulfill their needs. The prohibition is further contributing to social sustainability by entailing an increased awareness of the problems related to the Baltic Sea's environmental status. The writers primarily recommend building of more toilets on land and more suction drainage devices. The placement of these should be reviewed by an actor with an overall responsibility. Spreading of information about where the emptying equipments are located is recommended, both by an application in the mobile phone and marked in the nautical chart. In addition, information about the rules that apply to recreational pleasure craft owners and port responsibles should also be spread, as well as clear user instructions on emptying equipments.

Several utility companies are today offering products and services related to microgeneration of solar electricity which may seem irrational since a decreased usage of energy of a customer will lead to a decreased profitability for the core business. An increased demand for microgenerating facilities therefore creates a need for change of the utility companies’ current business models. Solar cells and distributed electricity generation are today developing into new markets that constitutes a new competitive force within the energy sector. The companies need to take this competitive force into account if they are not to be harmed in the long-term as the market develops. The aim of this thesis is to examine how the utility companies can develop their business models in order to support distributed electricity generation and microgeneration of solar electricity in a sustainable way.

Six different business models have been identified that are used in different parts of the world in order to deploy solar cell technologies. These are 1) customer owned that implies that the customer owns the solar cell facility after delivery, 2) community owned where an utility company or a third-party actor coordinates and runs a solar cell project with several owners or customers, 3) third-party owned that implies that a service company offers a complete solution to end customers and finances this through a third-party actor, 4) cross-selling where solar cells are sold as extra equipment or add-ons to other products, 5) host-owned feed-in that implies that all the generated electricity are fed in to the grid for a high compensation and also 6) modular based value propositions where a customer can choose between different packages of products and services that builds upon each other. The four groups customer related-, supplier related-, policy related- and technology related barriers against diffusion of solar cells and microgeneration could be identified within the theoretical framework of the thesis. In total, 17 theoretical barriers could be identified.

After an initial study of literature, a proper method constituted by three different parts could be chosen for the empirical work of the thesis. An online focus group discussion is together with desk research providing a foundation for a mapping of contextual opportunities and threats. A focus group discussion was decided to provide a proper combination of width and depth and was executed online since this demands less resources and can reach geographically spread respondents. Desk research was decided to be a proper supplement for the e-focus group. In order to be able to study the current business models in more depth, a case study was also executed constituting five different interviews at a Swedish utility company that offers sales of electricity and solar cells and also is a grid owner.

The empirical work resulted in a mapping of 38 opportunities and 27 threats that utility companies are faced with as the market for distributed electricity generation and microgeneration of solar electricity expands. There is also a need for contextual changes regarding policies and research as the utility companies are changing their business models. Though, utility companies should be able to anticipate a change towards a more distributed electricity market and implement new business models already today. There should already exist a basis for the utility companies to influence both politics and research through for example industry associations. It can through the result of this thesis be found that microgeneration is a growing substitute to traditional sales of electricity that threatens companies in several activities in the electricity sector. The way Swedish companies handle this new market threat is not sustainable and needs to be changed. This thesis finally presents three different directions that the business models of the utility companies can develop towards.

Energy is considered as one of the significant benchmarks towards sustainable growth. Due to the recenteconomic growth, energy demand is increasing day by day in Bangladesh. The power generation mainlyrelies on fossil fuels though there are plans to increase the renewable energy share by the concernstakeholders. Considering the global warming, energy generation from renewable sources is consideredas a sustainable way to mitigate the anthropogenic emission. This study, therefore, addresses thepotentiality of biogas production from municipal waste and agricultural residues in a city territory ofDhaka namely Hazaribagh. The potential sources include wastes from two markets, six slaughterhouses,domestic wastes, one poultry farm and three croplands. The calculations made in this study to estimatethe amount of biogas and electricity from the described sources are done in a simple way, just to illustratethe potential. This study suggests that there is a good potentiality of biogas production and electricitygeneration from municipal wastes and agricultural residues of Hazaribagh. Moreover, this study alsomentions the significant actors like government, future owners, people and so on that are needed to beincorporated to implement biogas solution in a city territory.

The furniture industry is an integral part of the European economy and is now facing economic, environmental, and regulatory challenges. Within the European Union (EU), a large amount of furniture every year goes to incineration or landfill, with only 10% being recycled. One of the causes is the increased supply of low-quality furniture that is put on the market, causing increased consumption levels, resulting in an increasing amount of waste. Additionally, most of the climate impact occurs within the extraction of raw materials. From an environmental perspective, vast opportunities present themselves. Simultaneously, new stricter legislation demands decreased use of resources and climate impact, and the introduction of new circular economy guidelines forces companies to act. By adopting a circular approach in the organisation, companies can improve their resource usage and climate impact. However, the adoption itself demands new types of business models, which is a challenge for the corporates in the furniture industry to realize. 

The furniture industry can be split into two sections, business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C), where the first one has reached a bit further than the latter, regarding circularity. This can be explained, among other things, by knowledge gaps between the two sections and that Product-Service System (PSS) is more established for B2B. PSS integrates products and services to fulfil the customer’s needs, which is seen as an enabler for circular economy. The aim of this thesis is to explore the furniture industry within B2C in Sweden by identifying which circular business practices are offered today, as well as exploring the challenges and opportunities for furniture companies to implement more circular business practices. In addition, it examines which prerequisites are central to a more circular furniture industry.

To achieve the purpose of this thesis, a qualitative approach has been used through a case study at a large Swedish B2C furniture company. Data has been collected through a literature study and an interview study where a total of 14 respondents have been interviewed. The interviewees consisted of both internal respondents at the case company as well as external parties consisting of experts and suppliers. In addition, a mapping consisting of a website study has been conducted to identify the current circular business practices that B2C furniture companies offer in Sweden today.

The result indicates that linear business models are currently dominating in the furniture industry and that there is an extensive demand for low-priced furniture, which often lacks quality. Regarding circular business practices, there is a limited amount that is being offered on the market. Out of 40 companies considered, four offered two circular business practices, 18 companies offered one circular business practice and 18 companies offered none. The offers included furniture care guides, reconditioning services, furniture leasing, recycling guides and second-hand sales.

The most central obstacles a circular furniture industry faces are the price aspect and the consumer attitude, where circular initiatives in many cases can be more expensive compared to buying new products. Cheap furniture has worse prerequisites for circularity due to the inadequate design and lack of spare parts. In addition, the hygiene aspect and logistical issues were found to be central barriers as well. On the other hand, one major opportunity for circular business practices is changes in consumer attitudes, which is changing with the coming generation due to an increasing interest in sustainability. Furthermore, there are upcoming directives and legal requirements as well as benefits consisting of increased profitability for companies in an early transition to a more circular business. The most essential prerequisites to enable a more circular furniture industry is enabling cooperation between actors and joint efforts to change current trends. It is thus clear that a change in the furniture industry is required, which requires actors to dare to change towards a more circular business.

Industrial ecology is defined as the study of material and energy flows through industrial systems and as such may focus on a geographic area, resource and/or industry sector. In these types of setting, industrial ecology is also often known as industrial symbiosis (IS). The proximity of companies in industrial estates facilitates the linking of utilities and the exchange of wastes and by-products, which may eventually be useful inputs for adjacent industrial processes. The typical model that has been applied in several regions of the world is one where an anchor-tenant organization with energy and by-product linkages is connected to companies physically located nearby. In the case of biomass symbiosis, however, the resource chains are not explicitly arranged by their industrial setting and the supply of waste and by-products is able to be organized in a more scattered way.

In this article, the role of industrial symbiosis is analyzed in respect of the planned industrial symbiosis activities in the Rotterdam Harbour and Industry Complex in the Netherlands and in the application of renewable energy in the Östergötland region in Sweden.

The objective of this article is to discuss the similarities and differences between the planned industrial symbiosis activities in Rotterdam and the unplanned biomass and industrial symbiosis activities in the Östergötland region. By presenting this knowledge in this article, it is anticipated that further development of industrial symbiosis application processes may be achieved. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Industrial Ecology (IE) in industrial estates has a geographic, resource, and/or industry sector focus. In such geographic and/or industry sector settings IE is often labelled as Industrial Symbiosis (IS), for instance by linking utilities and waste/by-product exchange, the organization of a resource chain such as in the case of biomass, or of linkages around a key-organization.

The role of industrial symbiosis is analyzed in the planned industrial symbiosis activities in the Rotterdam Harbor and Industry complex and the application process of renewable energy in the Östergötland region in Sweden.

The objective of this paper is to discuss a synthesis between the planned activities in Rotterdam and to unfold current industrial symbiosis activities in the Östergötland. Such knowledge can help further developing the application process of industrial symbiosis in Eco-Industrial Parks in China.