Personal lifestyle choices contribute up to 75% of national emissions and yet the greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories included in the National Inventory Report (NIR) of Canada provide limited insight on these choices. Better insight can be found using carbon footprint calculators that estimate individual emissions; however, they vary in regard to their input parameters, output data, and calculation methods. This study assessed five calculators, which are popular with the public, or compatibility with the Canadian NIR. A quantitative scoring matrix was developed to assess the output depth, academic proficiency, and effectiveness of the calculators to inform lifestyle changes, alongside NIR alignment. The results showed that the calculator with the overall highest cumulative score across all the comparative criteria was the one offered by Carbon Footprint Ltd. The other calculators that scored highly include CoolClimate Calculator and Carbon Independent. The potential of the calculators in regard to informing low-carbon lifestyles can be improved through the incorporation of more depth in terms of capturing the purchase information of goods and services and providing detailed secondary information to users, including mitigation strategies and carbon offset options. The main driver of incompatibility between the calculator tools and the NIR was the different approaches taken to the emissions inventory, with the NIR using a territorial framework and the calculators being consumption driven. The outcomes of this study demonstrate a global need for the evolution of NIR structuring to increase its relatability with citizens and for the improved standardization of publicly available tools.

This article applies historical research with cross-disciplinary analysis to investigate some "lost" stories of Canadian engagement in China's first multilateral development-aid project in 1981-1988. Policy reflection on bilateral relations can benefit from expanding recognition of some early Canadian experiences marginally examined in this significant case of Development Diplomacy within a Chinese context. Almost forgotten, these collaboration practices yet started when a small team of Canadian agricultural specialists provided three years of consulting service to this Northern Pasture and Livestock Development project co-funded by the IFAD. Our archival inquiries create refreshing lessons for international development-aid initiatives that advocate community-based, multiple-stakeholders collaboration for restoring bilateral relations.

This research quantifies the economic value of ecosystem services by land cover type, using a case study approach and data localized to southern Ontario, Canada. The cumulative value of different ecosystem services per unit area can be a valuable ecological indicator for guiding land use decision-making and environmental planning. Literature values were used to ascribe values of provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting ecosystem services for different land cover classes. Data describing land cover classification from two time periods were used to understand changes on the landscape before and after protected areas were designated. The results showed that wetlands were the most valuable land cover classification in this region. Regulating services accounted for 74% of the total value of ecosystem services across Halton in 2015. Within protected areas regulating services accounted for 77% of the total valuation. Overall, the Natural Heritage System protects 85% of the available value of ecosystem services within the study area. The data shows there is a drop in the value of regulating services and an increase in cultural services between 2002 and 2015. These findings illustrate the effectiveness of using ecosystem service values to assist planners and land managers in making land management decisions with regard to maintaining protected areas for the long term, versus the conversion of protected areas into urban development. Overall, the tool presented here is capable of monitoring discrete categories of ecological services as well as overall values to provide useful ecological indicators for environmental planners and land managers. Using this approach, a land area can be assessed over time to see how different ecosystem services are changing. The use of the tool described in this paper, which ascribes economic values of ecosystem services to specific landcover types, can show planners and land managers where services are being improved, or in decline over time. The tool can be used to provide a common basis for comparison of land use trade-offs by assessing the impacts of different decisions on overall ecosystem value and on the discrete categories of services. Localization of ecosystem services and economic values can serve to modify the described tool for adaption and use around the world.

In the global push to develop bio-based products that can help meet climate-related goals, researchers have increasingly utilized life cycle assessment (LCA) methodologies. These methodologies have been applied to understand environmental impacts associated with all the stages of the life cycle of an existing product or process. These methods have also evolved into a powerful eco-design tool, where LCA can be applied in the initial stages of the development of a product or process, with the aim of guiding choices toward a greater sustainability. In recent years, LCA approach has expanded to include economic (life cycle cost or LCC) and social (social life cycle assessment or S-LCA) considerations, and thus it has emerged as a reference for more comprehensive assessments aimed at including the multiple dimensions of sustainability. This chapter presents the main LCA tools that can be used to assess the environmental, economic and social impact of emerging bioproducts. To properly evaluate new bioproducts requires a review of the facilities that can produce them ("biorefineries") as well as impacts felt both upstream and downstream of the processing facility. Some of the challenges with LCA, as well as with S-LCA implementation are considered. A case study is then presented more in detail in order to demonstrate how these assessment tools can guide research and development activities in this field.

This chapter explores the concept of a circular bioeconomy. The concept of circular economies suggests that optimal flow of goods and services can be represented as a loop; within a circular bioeconomy, the inputs to the loop are primarily biomass and outputs range from solid bioproducts, to paper and paperboard, and bioenergy. The circular bioeconomy concept also has a significant link to regional geographies, where resources may flow from point to point for processing and use, and where the final leg of the process brings materials back to the starting point. The global carbon cycle, which transfers carbon between the atmosphere and the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems of the planet, is an example of circularity, which is emulated by circular bioeconomies. Feedstocks from forests, agriculture, or marine ecosystems may be utilized in a cascade of applications where products at every stage are designed for eventual recovery and reuse. Examples of existing circular bioeconomy applications include paper recycling—wood fiber may be reused in multiple paper applications before finally failing and being disposed of. The circular bioeconomy concept can be expanded to primary forest products (such as lumber), which might be used in one or more structural applications before being recycled into nonstructural applications (such as panels), chemicals (such as resins or coatings), or for energy production. Given proper design, a product cascade can be developed that would see biomass being utilized in sequential applications, and where each product in the chain is designed to ultimately supply the next product category. This vision would allow a single biomass input to deliver multiple bio-based products over an extended timeframe, including materials, chemicals, and energy. In this fashion, the feedstock supply is effectively multiplied.

This paper examines China's fertilizer conservation in 1978–2017. The provincial data displays a positive reversal shift consistent to the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis in fertilizer application. The occurrences of applying less fertilizer but achieving higher farming output, is a positive signal for fertilizer conservation. Then we select Hubei as a case study for more county-specific examinations. To examine Hubei's 80 county-level areas in 2000–2017, we define an ecological impact index of fertilizer use as the local fertilizer application divided by the agricultural gross product. After passing the unit root tests, the panel regressions indicate the N-shaped EKC shift: Hubei's annual county-specific fertilizer-impact indexes rose first with the rural household income, and then declined before they started increasing again, while time effect also existed significantly in the samples. We advise local agricultural policy implementers keep multi-scalar measures and circular economy to conserve fertilizer-use, with more stakeholders engaging fertilizer conservation in rural areas.

A new forest biorefining model is emerging in which high‐value materials would be produced alongside a cellulosic sugar by‐product in facilities scaled to match fiber availability in northern forests. As these emerging biorefining technologies are being developed by private entities, the economics associated with them are little known. The goal of this study is to use publicly available information to carry out an initial techno‐economic assessment for two emerging biorefining technologies: one that produces sugar and hydrolysis lignin (H‐lignin) from thermomechanical pulping (TMP) and another that produces sugar, lignosulfonate, and nanocellulose. The break‐even price for H‐lignin and nanocellulose is estimated for the respective technology and a credit is applied for cellulosic sugar and other co‐product sales based on current market value. It was found that the minimum product selling price (MPSP) for H‐lignin was within the range of high purity lignin but not enough is known about the properties of H‐lignin to determine if this is a reasonable value for prospective end uses. The estimated MPSP of nanocellulose was found to be considerably lower than for more conventional nanocellulose‐producing methods that use Kraft or dissolving pulp as a starting point. The nanocellulose produced through the second process modeled has different properties than conventional nanocellulose, which need to be further explored. Having a sense of the cost to produce these novel materials will help to direct research on viable end uses. The methodology presented, using only publicly available information, can also be replicated for other emerging technologies. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Around the world, approximately 3.9 million hectares of forest are lost to deforestation every year. The majority of forest loss is seen in the tropical forests of Asia, Africa, and South America. This article describes some of the challenges in measuring deforestation. Deforestation rates have changed over recent years, with the overall rate of deforestation at the global scale declining slightly. In some countries—particularly Brazil, where almost 1 million ha are lost to deforestation annually, and Nigeria, where up to 5% of the entire national forest area is being deforested year to year—deforestation remains a significant problem. The principle drivers of deforestation, including commercial agriculture, local or subsistence-level agriculture, illegal logging, urban expansion, and mining are each discussed, as is the role of deforestation in relation to climate change. Deforestation is closely linked to social drivers and rural development, and slowing or stopping deforestation will have strong social impacts, particularly at the local level.

Natural disturbances are common in Canadian boreal managed forests. For example, during and after insect epidemics, foresters must deal with significant amounts of degraded or dead wood that cannot be processed into sawn timber or pulp. Bioenergy could be an alternative pathway for this wood. A case study in Quebec (Canada) was used to evaluate the profitability of pellet production for bioenergy using degraded trees from insect epidemics. A bioenergy scenario was simulated in which degraded trees were harvested for bioenergy alongside sound wood for timber and pulp. This scenario was compared to a reference scenario in which degraded trees were left on cutovers. Using wood pellets as a case study, the results showed that at current market prices, harvesting degraded trees for pellet production is not as profitable as leaving them in the forest. Nevertheless, the overall forest operations for procuring wood for timber and pulp were still profitable, even with very high degradation levels. Procuring degraded trees reduced the overall fixed costs per harvested m3 and allowed average savings of C$2.83/harvested m3. The silvicultural savings associated with lower site preparation needs following procurement of degraded trees ranged from C$0/ha to C$500/ha, resulting in average savings of C$2.31/harvested m3. Depending on the stand conditions, the distribution of fixed costs and silvicultural savings of biomass procurement could be either low or significant.

The front cover image © David Blair is based on the Review Article Review of Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions Assessments of Hydroprocessed Renewable Fuel (HEFA) from Oilseeds by Debrah Zemanek et al., https://doi.org/10.1002/bbb.2125 .

Renewable fuel from the hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) pathway represents a promising short‐term option for reducing fossil fuel use in transportation. However, some life‐cycle assessments (LCAs) have shown that HEFA diesel and jet fuel may have higher life‐cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions than the fossil fuels they replace. Many of these studies examined HEFA fuel derived from oilseed feedstocks. Here, results and methodology from 20 LCAs of HEFA fuel from oilseeds are reviewed in an effort to determine the sources of variability in the reported life‐cycle GHG emissions of HEFA fuels. Although there was a 61–63% reduction in median life cycle GHG emissions of HEFA biojet and renewable diesel compared to conventional petroleum fuels, this review highlights the importance of standardized methodologies for life‐cycle assessment (e.g., CORSIA, RSB) and indicates the need to prevent the conversion of forest land for biofuel production, as well as the potential opportunity for alternative oilseeds such as camelina and carinata as feedstocks to produce HEFA fuels with lower life‐cycle GHG emissions. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd