Publications

February 20, 2017

BC3 Journal Article “Effects of wind damage on the optimal management of boreal forests under current and changing climatic conditions”

This study presents a new method for considering the risk of wind damage in forest planning and for predicting the amount of damage and its effects on timber production, economic profitability and carbon balance of forestry. The effects of wind damage on the optimal management of boreal forests under current and changing climatic conditions were analyzed by comparing four forest management plans. A reference plan maximized net present value (NPV) with even-flow harvesting constraints.
February 13, 2017

BC3 Journal Article “The value of agent-based modelling for assessing tourism–environment interactions in the Anthropocene”

Tourism is one of the prime manifestations of the ‘great acceleration of humankind’ since the Anthropocene started around 1950. The almost 50-fold increase in international tourism arrivals has substantial implications for environmental sustainability, but these have not yet been fully explored. This paper argues that a full exploration requires the study of tourism as a complex socio-ecological system. Such approach integrates environmental processes and stakeholder behaviour and puts feedbacks in the spotlight.
February 3, 2017

BC3 Journal Articles “A global review of past land use, climate, and active vs. passive restoration effects on forest recovery”

New BC3 Journal Article published: "Meli P., Holl K.D., Benayas J.M.R., Jones H.P., Jones P.C., Montoya D., Mateos D.M. 2017. A global review of past land use, climate, and active vs. passive restoration effects on forest recovery. PLoS One. e0171368."
January 30, 2017

BC3 Journal Article”Understanding risks in the light of uncertainty: low-probability, high-impact coastal events in cities”

A quantification of present and future mean annual losses due to extreme coastal events can be crucial for adequate decision making on adaptation to climate change in coastal areas around the globe. However, this approach is limited when uncertainty needs to be accounted for. In this paper, we assess coastal flood risk from sea-level rise and extreme events in 120 major cities around the world using an alternative stochastic approach that accounts for uncertainty.
January 30, 2017

BC3 Journal Articles “Winter respiratory C losses provide explanatory power for net ecosystem productivity”

New BC3 Journal Article published: "Haeni, M., et al. (2017), Winter respiratory C losses provide explanatory power for net ecosystem productivity, J. Geophys. Res. Biogeosci., 122, 243–260"
January 30, 2017

BC3 Journal Article “Institutionalizing environmental valuation into policy: Lessons from 7 Indonesian agencies”

Monetary valuation of the environment is increasingly embedded in policy. Despite broad claims that valuation is policy-relevant, there is widespread frustration that it has not widely improved environmental outcomes, that it obscures many other types of values, and presents unintended consequences. We argue that this is, in part, because of a tendency to overlook the mechanics of how valuation tools and data are embedded into the institutions (regulations, norms, rules, schemes) that mediate decision-making.
January 27, 2017

BC3 Journal Article “Anthropogenic ecosystem disturbance and the recovery debt”

Ecosystem recovery from anthropogenic disturbances, either without human intervention or assisted by ecological restoration, is increasingly occurring worldwide. As ecosystems progress through recovery, it is important to estimate any resulting deficit in biodiversity and functions. Here we use data from 3,035 sampling plots worldwide, to quantify the interim reduction of biodiversity and functions occurring during the recovery process (that is, the ‘recovery debt’). Compared with reference levels, recovering ecosystems run annual deficits of 46–51% for organism abundance, 27–33% for species diversity, 32–42% for carbon cycling and 31–41% for nitrogen cycling.
January 26, 2017

New Coal-Fired Plants Jeopardise Paris Agreement

Global greenhouse gas emissions need to peak soon and be reduced practically to zero in the second half of this century in order to not exceed the climate targets adopted in the Paris Agreement. However, there are currently numerous coal-fired power stations around the world at different stages of construction and planning that could be completed in the next decade. If all these plants are actually built, their expected future emissions will make it very difficult to reach these targets, even in an optimistic scenario with the deployment of carbon capture and storage technologies. Policy makers around the world need to react quickly and help to redirect investment plans for new coal-fired power stations towards low-carbon technologies
January 18, 2017

BC3 Journal Article “Mitigation implications of an ice-free summer in the Arctic Ocean”

The rapid loss of sea ice in the Arctic is one of the most striking manifestations of climate change. As sea ice melts, more open water is exposed to solar radiation, absorbing heat and generating a sea-ice–albedo feedback that reinforces Arctic warming. Recent studies stress the significance of this feedback mechanism and suggest that ice-free summer conditions in the Arctic Ocean may occur faster than previously expected, even under low-emissions pathways.
January 2, 2017

BC3 Journal Article “SIMSWASTE-AD – A modelling framework for the environmental assessment of agricultural waste management strategies: Anaerobic digestion”

On-farm anaerobic digestion (AD) has been promoted due to its improved environmental performance, which is based on a number of life cycle assessments (LCA). However, the influence of site-specific conditions and practices on AD performance is rarely captured in LCA studies and the effects on C and N cycles are often overlooked. In this paper, a new model for AD (SIMSWASTE-AD) is described in full and tested against a selection of available measured data.