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.
2017
Sammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Sammendrag
There has long been a claim that winter injuries of grass are a significant economic burden for golf courses in the Nordic countries. To confirm this claim, in 2015 the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research and the Norwegian Golf Federation, with support of the Scandinavian Turfgrass and Environment Research Foundation, conducted a net-based survey about winter injury in the five Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden). This comprehensive survey showed that total costs of repair of winter-injured greens and fairways together with lost revenue on golf courses in the Nordic countries can be at least €14 million. In a year with significant winter injuries, the average cost to repair the turf was between €3000 and €12,000 on 88% of the courses. The revenue loss after a winter with considerable injuries was less than €6000 at 50% of the courses, and 25% of the courses reported a loss between €6000 and €12,000 for these years. The causes of winter injuries varied depending on geography and grass species used on the greens. Biotic factors played a major role in the southern part of Scandinavia, and ice and water injuries were most devastating north of 60°N. This paper summarizes some of the answers from the respondents, including information about the dominating grass species on Nordic golf greens.
Sammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Blas Mola-Yudego Javier Arevalo Olalla Díaz-Yáñez Ioannis Dimitriou Antti Haapala Antonio Carlos Ferraz Filho Mari Selkimäki Ruben ValbuenaSammendrag
Wood biomass for energy can be largely produced in northern Europe from forest land resulting from silvicultural practices and from agricultural land in the form of fast-growing plantations. The present paper estimates and compares the current regional potentials for wood biomass production attending to these sources. The data are based on spatialized estimates from previous models, largely based on empirical records concerning forest and plantation's productivity. The results show that 8.5 Mm3 of wood biomass can be produced annually from plantations when using 5% of the total available agricultural land, and 58.5 Mm3 from forest lands using current estimates of forest production. However, the results also show that a strategy for wood biomass resource management should be local rather than general: wood biomass potential from fast-growing plantations was larger in 19 regions than from forest resources (10 in Denmark, 6 in Norway and 3 in Lithuania) out of the 91 regions in the area included to this study. When considered together, northern Europe presents significant potential for wood biomass production for energy uses, and each country - and even region - should develop independent policy strategies of biomass generation in order to most efficiently realize their own potential for wood-based bioenergy.
Forfattere
Inge Stupak Vivian Kvist-Johannsen Thomas Nord-Larsen Lars Vesterdal Ingeborg Callesen Kjell Suadicani Erik Schou Rolf Björheden Antti Asikainen Nicholas Clarke Anders C. HansenSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Lone RossSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Lone RossSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Michael RoledaSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Subal Chandra Kumbhakar Gudbrand LienSammendrag
In this paper we estimate the short-run, long-run and overall efficiency of Norwegian electricity distribution companies for the period 2000–2013 controlling for both noise and company effects. Short-run inefficiency is the part of inefficiency that is allowed to adjust freely over time for each company, but long-run (persistent) inefficiency remains constant over time, although it is allowed to vary across companies. For robustness check we also consider two additional models in which either company effects are not controlled or these are treated as inefficiency. The production technology is represented by a translog input distance function in all three models. We find that technical change and returns to scale are quite robust across the models. However, the efficiency scores across the three models we consider are not correlated strongly. We conclude that the regulators and practitioners should take extra caution in using the proper model in practice, especially when the efficiency measures are used to reward/punish companies through incentives for better performance.
Sammendrag
1.A large population increase of the Svalbard-breeding pink-footed goose Anser brachyrhynchus over recent decades has intensified the conflict with agriculture at the spring-staging sites in Norway. Knowledge of the yield loss caused by goose grazing in these northern areas is lacking, and the motivation behind the study was to quantify a relationship between grazing pressure and yield loss of agricultural grasslands and corresponding changes in vegetation composition. 2.Field trials were established on agricultural grasslands at four sites in central Norway. Eight plots were established at each site; four with exclosures to exclude or reduce grazing from geese and four with access for the geese. The exact same plots were followed for 2–4 years. Dropping density, used as a measure of grazing pressure, and compressed sward height were recorded throughout the goose staging periods, and dry matter yield was determined at first and second harvests. Plant samples from first harvests were analysed for vegetation composition. 3.Grazing pressure varied between both years and sites. Exclosures reduced grazing pressure by 75–78% during high-pressure grazing periods and increased first harvest yields by up to 31%. At lower grazing pressure, exclosures prevented grazing completely. Grazing pressure was inversely correlated with dry matter yield at first harvest, but second harvest yields were unaffected. 4.The fraction of sown species declined while the fraction of weeds increased during the study both in open plots and exclosures, but level of grazing pressure did not have any significant influence on the overall fraction of sown species, or in any specific year. 5.Synthesis and applications. As the same plots were measured over several years, it was possible to quantify goose-grazing effects beyond one season. In the context of the wildlife-agriculture conflict, the results demonstrate that some farmers always suffer disproportionately with yearly variations. The relationship between grazing pressure and yield loss may provide knowledge to a regional goose grazing subsidy scheme in the study area, identifying the most affected areas and distributing the subsidies correspondingly. However, the seasonal variations in grazing pressure demonstrate the difficulty of targeting exact areas on a yearly basis. On the other hand, the observed variations may promote another management tool in the form of delayed ploughing of stubble fields before spring sowing, as stubble fields may attract more geese, reducing the grazing pressure on agricultural grasslands and hence the overall conflicts with agricultural interests.