Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2020
Authors
Karin Juul HesselsøeAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Karin Juul HesselsøeAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Sekhar Udaya NagothuAbstract
The final chapter in the book summarizes the main messages from the preceding chapters. It analyses the diverse views of the bioeconomy concept and supports the view that sustainable bioeconomy development has the potential to change the way we produce and consume natural resources while reducing the negative impacts on the environment. However, there are always risks associated with any new paradigm, hence, it is necessary to ensure transparency in the process, consider the interests of the most vulnerable groups and introduce genuine stakeholder management from the start. Whether, and to what extent, bioeconomy can contribute to the SDGs is a debatable issue. However, several case studies in the book do support the idea that bioeconomy can help in achieving several SDGs. The chapter also highlights the importance of sustainability indicators, including ecological (i.e., the local ecological footprint, total organic carbon, soil nitrogen, transport of minerals from land to rivers and oceans and other ecosystem services), economic and social sustainability indices in the context of bioeconomy development. Their measurement and monitoring are essential to ensure that we are on the sustainable development path. The chapter suggests possible measures to overcome constraints or risks associated with bioeconomy and proposes the necessary conditions required for sustainable bioeconomy development.
Abstract
This chapter focuses on ocean-land interactions and the potential for bioeconomy that offers unique opportunities to feed the increasing human population. Oceans can provide a circular bioeconomy by using increased CO2, and dissolved nutrients (P, N, Fe and other elements) in the water, leached from land-based activities. Estimates show that CO2 capture by seaweed cultivation alone can range from 1,500 to 3,000 tons per square kilometre. Ocean photosynthetic production provides more food and energy for human consumption without external inputs. This will contribute to sustainable development by providing food security and will aid the recovery of degraded ecosystems, thus directly contributing to the SDG 2 (reducing hunger) and SDG 14 (protecting life below water). Nevertheless, increasing food production from the oceans has its associated risks if the proper conditions are not met. Hence, proper coastal land use management is important as it continuously affects the nutrient flows, which in turn can lead to more serious changes in carbonate chemistry and ocean acidification. Genuine and stable partnerships, therefore, are necessary to share responsibility for environmental stewardship and to manage marine and coastal ecosystems sustainably. The chapter suggests the need for financial incentives to encourage research and innovations, support farmers associations and establish common platforms to share data and knowledge on oceans for better environmental management.
Abstract
This chapter provides a comprehensive literature review of sustainable bioeconomy development, with a focus on the definition, concepts, potential and risks involved. Countries differ on how they view bioeconomy, with some putting emphasis on sustainability and ecosystem services, while others focus on economic growth as the main goal. The literature review shows that bioeconomy is a rather new concept, at times its goals are conflicting, and its objectives are opposing. Hence, the lack of a common bioeconomy agenda and understanding across the globe will be one of the main constraints to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, bioeconomy brings the sustainable development discussions back onto the policy agenda, at both the national and international levels. There are sceptics who do not support this argument and claim that bioeconomy and SDGs do not go together and this is the agenda set by some industrialized countries and the corporate sector to suit their own interests. As the impacts of bioeconomy spread beyond country borders, a common agenda is necessary to keep the balance between the economic, environmental and social objectives. Experience of bioeconomy so far is limited and hence future development must be based on the strictly responsible, accountable and sustainable use of natural resources.
Authors
Camilla Lorange Lindberg Hans Martin Hanslin Marian Schubert Thomas Marcussen Ben Trevaskis Jill Christine Preston Siri FjellheimAbstract
Semelparous annual plants flower a single time during their 1‐yr life cycle, investing much of their energy into rapid reproduction. By contrast, iteroparous perennial plants flower multiple times over several years, and partition their resources between reproduction and persistence. To which extent evolutionary transitions between life‐cycle strategies are internally constrained at the developmental, genetic and phylogenetic level is unknown. Here we study the evolution of life‐cycle strategies in the grass subfamily Pooideae and test if transitions between them are facilitated by evolutionary precursors. We integrate ecological, life‐cycle strategy and growth data in a phylogenetic framework. We investigate if growth traits are candidates for a precursor. Species in certain Pooideae clades are predisposed to evolve annuality from perenniality, potentially due to the shared inheritance of specific evolutionary precursors. Seasonal dry climates, which have been linked to annuality, were only able to select for transitions to annuality when the precursor was present. Allocation of more resources to above‐ground rather than below‐ground growth is a candidate for the precursor. Our findings support the hypothesis that only certain lineages can respond quickly to changing external conditions by switching their life‐cycle strategy, likely due to the presence of evolutionary precursors.
Authors
Joel Lönnqvist Hans Martin Hanslin Birgitte Gisvold Johannessen Tone Merete Muthanna Maria Viklander Godecke BleckenAbstract
Standard succulent vegetation mixes developed mostly in temperate climates are being increasingly used on green roofs in different climate zones with uncertain outcome regarding vegetation survival and cover. We investigated vegetation on green roofs at nine temperate, cold, and/or wet locations in Norway and Sweden covering wide ranges of latitude, mean annual temperature, annual precipitation, frequencies of freeze-thaw cycles, and longest annual dry period. The vegetation on the roofs were surveyed in two consecutive years, and weather data were compiled from meteorological databases. At all sites we detected a significant decline in species compared to originally intended (planted/sown) species. Both the survival rate and cover of the intended vegetation were positively related to the mean annual temperature. Contrary to a hypothesis, we found that intended vegetation cover was negatively rather than positively related to mean annual precipitation. Conversely, the unintended (spontaneous) vegetation was favoured by high mean annual precipitation and low mean annual temperature, possibly by enabling it to colonize bare patches and outcompete the intended vegetation. When there is high mortality and variation in cover of the intended vegetation, predicting the strength of ecosystem services the vegetation provides on green roofs is difficult. The results highlight the needs for further investigation on species traits and the local factors driving extinction and colonizations in order to improve survivability and ensure a dense vegetation throughout the successional stages of a green roof.
Abstract
In the future, the world is expected to rely increasingly on renewable biomass resources for food, fodder, fibre and fuel. The sustainability of this transition to bioeconomy for our water systems depends to a large extent on how we manage our land resources. Changes in land use together with climate change will affect water quantity and quality, which again will have implications for the ecosystem services provided by water resources. These are the main topics of this Ambio special issue on ‘‘Environmental effects of a green bio-economy’’. This paper offers a summary of the eleven papers included in this issue and, at the same time, outlines an approach to quantify and mitigate the impacts of bioeconomy on water resources and their ecosystem services, with indications of useful tools and knowledge needs.
Authors
Eva Skarbøvik Jukka Aroviita Jens Fölster Anne Lyche Solheim Katarina Kyllmar Katri Rankinen Brian KronvangAbstract
Reference conditions of water bodies are defined as the natural or minimal anthropogenically disturbed state. We compared the methods for determining total phosphorus and total nitrogen concentrations in rivers in Finland, Norway and Sweden as well as the established reference conditions and evaluated the possibility for transfer and harmonisation of methods. We found that both methods and values differed, especially for lowland rivers with a high proportion of agriculture in the catchment. Since Denmark has not yet set reference conditions for rivers, two of the Nordic methods were tested for Danish conditions. We conclude that some of the established methods are promising but that further development is required. We moreover argue that harmonisation of reference conditions is needed to obtain common benchmarks for assessing the impacts of current and future land use changes on water quality.
Authors
Paul Eric AspholmAbstract
No abstract has been registered