Global plastic pollution of the natural environment is extremely detrimental as it is causing deaths of animal species. More than 80 % of marine litter is made up by plastics and 70 % of those are made up by disposable items. For this reason, the European Parliament has agreed to abolish the top ten single-use plastic items found in the marine environment from the EU market from 2021. Therefore, the fossil-based disposables will need to be substituted by disposables made from renewable materials. It is thus important to investigate the environmental impact of these alternatives through their life cycle in order to support sustainable consumption and production. In this study, environmental impact of disposable plates made from two different renewable materials (paper and leaf) were analysed by means of life cycle assessment (LCA). The aim of the study was to examine the environmental performance of the two plates in the impact category global warming potential (GWP); and reveal the processes with the largest contributions to the overall GWP of each plate. The leaf plate was produced in India and the paper plate in the Nordics, however, both plates were used and disposed of in Uppsala, Sweden. The results showed that the leaf plate has a higher GWP due to its long-distance transport and electricity use derived from fossil fuels. Scenario analysis has proved that its GWP can be reduced when sea transport route is chosen instead of flying and production is increased. When it comes to the paper plate life cycle, the processing stage was identified to contribute the most to the total GWP. It could be further improved by applying a biodegradable layer for its coating. To keep the good performance in GWP the plate should be incinerated with energy recovery. The disposal of the plates has a substantial positive influence on their total carbon footprint as both plates substitute use of fossil fuels. However, the credits allocated for the different waste management options are specific to Uppsala and thus the results of this study should be applied only under similar conditions.

Med ett klimat som blir allt varmare kan behovet av nedkylning i fastigheter öka. Bergkyla är ett exempel på en nedkylningsmetod som kan vara ett effektivt sätt att kyla ner fastigheter på som redan använder sig av bergvärme. Då kan samma borrhål användas till båda ändamål; värme under kallare perioder och kyla under varmare. Bergkyla hämtar kyla från berggrunden genom att en köldbärarvätska cirkulerar i slangar nedsänkta i borrhålet. Köldbärarvätskan är varm när den förs ner i borrhålet där den kyls ned och förs därefter tillbaka till anläggningen. Detta utbyte av värmeenergi mellan köldbärarvätskan och berget gör inte bara att köldbärarvätskan sjunker i temperatur, berget runt borrhålet ökar även i temperatur. Om berget runt borrhålet ökar i temperatur kommer även det djupliggande, relikta grundvatten som finns i berggrunden att öka i temperatur. Detta skulle kunna skapa en vertikaltransport av det kloridhaltiga relikta grundvattnet upp till det ytliga grundvattnet, som då kontamineras. Målet med detta projekt var att undersöka huruvida en ökad användning av bergkyla skulle kunna skapa en vertikaltransport av det relikta grundvattnet upp till det ytliga och i sådana fall om detta skulle vara av betydelse för dricksvattenproduktionen i Uppsala. Området som studerades i detta projekt är Sunnersta, där antalet borrhål för bergvärme är många och potentiellt är ett område där många även väljer att installera bergkyla i sina redan befintliga borrhål. Projektet baserades på en litteraturstudie samt fördjupade beräkningar på vertikaltransporten av det relikta grundvattnet. Temperaturökningarna som beräkningarna baserades på var för enskilda borrhål 0,02 grader Celsius, där området runt borrhålet som var påverkat hade en radie på 20 m. För 47 borrhål användes istället temperaturökningen 1,2 grader Celsius, där storleken på det berörda området inte var specificerat. Extremfall för temperaturen i grundvattnet studerades för att se hur flödeshastigheten förändrades och genom det se hur tiden för transporten av det relikta vattnet påverkades. När den förstnämnda temperaturökningen användes så erhölls resultatet att det skulle ta 1750 år. Koncentrationen klorid detta medför i det ytliga grundvattnet blev då 253 mg/l om omblandningen av de båda vattenmassorna skulle ske under ett dygn, samt 75,5 mg/l om omblandningen skulle ske under ett år. Detta jämfördes med 100 mg/l som var riktvärdet för klorid i grundvatten från SGU. Analyserna av resultaten visade att en vertikaltransport kommer ske vid en temperaturökning orsakad av bergkylautvinning. Risken att det relikta grundvattnet skulle kontaminera det ytliga grundvattnet bedömdes dock låg eftersom det skulle krävas antingen väldigt många år för transporten eller osannolikt stora temperaturökningar. Med de antaganden som gjordes fanns stora osäkerheter kring beräkningarna och det främsta utvecklingsområdet bedömdes vara att mer forskning krävs för att kunna dra säkrare slutsatser kring riskerna med bergkyla. / STUNS Energy Stories

The Arctic archipelago of Svalbard has experienced among the greatest increases in temperature on Earth in the last few decades. The changing climatic conditions have a large impact on the glacier mass balance. This study makes use of a highresolution model dataset with data on climatic and glacier conditions on Svalbard from 1957 to 2018. The model dataset is used to analyse the spatiotemporal variability in glacier mass balance across Svalbard and linking those changes to long-term trends in meteorological conditions. The study is focused on the spatial gradients in trends between two regions in Svalbard, the coldest part of the archipelago, Nordaustlandet and the milder southern part of the main island Spitsbergen. The north eastern (NE) region is found to have a greater increase in annual air temperature over the simulation period with 5.5 °C compared to 3.5 °C for the south western (SW) region. The increase in annual summer temperatures is much smaller with a total increase of 1 °C for the NW and 1.5 °C for the SW. Both regions show a small, but significant, increase of precipitation. Relative humidity and cloud cover in the NE are increasing slightly over the time period, probably due to retreating sea ice cover. Glacier melt and runoff are increasing in both regions, which is contributing to significant negative trends in the mass balance. The increase in melt and run off is stronger in the SW than in the NE. There’s a strong correlation between summer air temperature and glacier mass balance, melt and runoff. Refreezing in the NE is decreasing much faster than in the SW. Refreezing is strongly correlated with annual air temperatures in the NE and not in the SW, probably due to lower temperatures in the NE region.

I detta projekt har farthinders påverkan på luftkvaliteten på Vaksalagatan i Uppsala studerats. Bakgrunden till detta projekt var att oro bland de boende på Vaksalagatan uppstod då farthinder infördes på gatan under 2017 och att det ligger i Uppsalas kommuns intresse att ständigt arbeta med att förbättra luftkvaliteten i kommunen. Höga halter av luftföroreningar är ett allvarligt folkhälsoproblem och orsakar många för tidiga dödsfall. Partiklar med en aerodynamisk diameter mindre än 10 m (PM10) och kvävedioxider (NO2) är de luftföroreningar som idag påverkar människors hälsa främst och det är därför just dessa två valts att studera i detta projekt. Båda dessa luftföroreningar har vägtrafiken som en av de främsta utsläppskällorna. Halter av PM10 domineras av partiklar som frigörs vid slitage av vägbana, däck och bromsar bland annat. Vid förbränning av bränslen frigörs kväveoxider (NOx) som sedan oxideras till NO2 i luft. För att utvärdera hur luftkvaliteten på Vaksalagatan påverkades av farthinder användes simuleringsverktyget SIMAIR. SIMAIR är ett webbaserat modellsystem utvecklat av Sveriges meteorologiska och hydrologiska institut (SMHI) främst för att beräkna luftkvaliteten runt om i Sveriges tätorter och för att kontrollera halterna i jämförelse med miljökvalitetsnormer, utvärderingströsklar och miljökvalitetsmålet Frisk luft. Då resuspensionsmodellen som är implementerad i SIMAIR saknar hastighetsberoende för partiklar infördes en korrektion av detta. Resultatet från detta projekt resulterade i att både emissionerna och halterna PM10 minskade vid införandet av farthinder. För NOx samt NO2 ökade emissioner och halterna då simuleringar med farthinder genomfördes i jämförelse med referenskörningen som inte innefattade några farthinder. För att fastställa hur luftkvaliteten påverkades av farthinder längs hela Vaksalagatan beräknades procentuella förändringar av respektive luftförorening. Den procentuella förändringen visar dock att halten PM10 minskar med 12 % samt att NO2 ökar med 17 %. Resultat från en tidigare studie visar att PM10 har en större negativ effekt på folkhälsan i jämförelse med NO2 och därmed är den samlade bedömningen att luftkvaliteten, sett till människors hälsa, förbättras något på Vaksalagatan.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of the groundwater around the Aitik copper mine- one of Europe’s largest copper mine located 15 km outside of Gällivare, Sweden - as well the placement of the groundwater pipes around the area. The study also included a survey of what kind of terms, regarding groundwater that may become relevant in the future for an activity of Aitik’s size and type. Monitoring data was analysed between the years 2014 – 2018 for the parameters; pH, SO4, Cd, Co, Cu, Zn, Ni and U. The correlation between the parameters where tested and the monitoring data where compared to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency criteria for groundwater as well to the groundwater chemistry from a reference area nearby, Liikavaara Östra. The result of the study shows that low pH raises the mobility of the metals Cd, Co, Cu, Zn and Ni. The result also indicates that SO4, Ni and Co are higher than the reference area but that the groundwater overall shows small signs of being affected by sulphide weathering. Therefore, metals can’t be excluded from originating from high background contents. The geographic analyse shows that the groundwater pipes are well placed in compared with the water flow direction and that two of the pipes can be excluded from sampling. Future terms regarding groundwater will likely regard protective measures and quantity restrictions. Still monitoring groundwater quality is very important to control environmental impact of the activity and to prevent deterioration of quality in the future.

The gap between rural and urban is widening in ways that reward urban lifestyles and undermine the interests of rural communities. The asymmetrical power relation between rural and urban is relevant in a Swedish context where Norrland, Sweden's northernmost region, is experiencing outmigration and cutbacks in welfare services all the while urban centers in southern Sweden attract innovation, economic capital and an inflow of young, educated people. This study examines what perceptions of Norrland that are dominating the Swedish media landscape and by doing so aims to investigate how power relations between urban and rural are constructed in the sustainability discourses ecological modernization and the environmental justice framework. The study is based on a discourse analysis of printed articles in the national press and TT news agency over a 10 to 12 years time span. In addition to discourse analysis, a theoretical framework concerning visions of sustainability and urban/rural divisions are applied. The result suggest that the material primarily articulate Norrland as a natural resource base for economic profit and as a site for realizing ideas inherent to the ecological modernization discourse. Resistance against Norrland as a site for production and exploitation are embedded in the environmental justice discourse and shed light on the socially unequal and geographically uneven patterns of injustice.

This study examines the adoption of clean cooking technologies in developing countries with a focus on the ACE-1 advanced biomass stove (ABS). Marginalized communities in rural environments are often exposed to high levels of Household Air Pollution (HAP) due to the common use of traditional cookstoves. The United Nations (UN) has recognized the adoption of clean cooking technology like the ABS as a key driver and high-impact opportunity in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Nonetheless, the context for adoption is complex. Adoption depends on numerous variables, that can enable or hinder the uptake of modern cookstoves. This study is based on the assumption, that adoption starts with the decision-making process and acquisition of the stove. Based on a field study in rural Cambodia, this research focuses on users at the initial stage of adoption. By means of questionnaire-based interviews, this study identifies how variables related to ‘fuel and technology’ and ‘household and setting’ affect the likeliness of adoption and what opportunities can be identified to facilitate the process of adoption. The study finds, that ABS-suitable biomass fuels are available and accessible in rural Cambodia. Besides, the production of renewable biomass fuels like pellets is growing, which provides opportunities for collaboration with stove distributors. The study confirms the common practice of stove stacking and points out the strong market presence of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) stoves. Market activities need to consider these factors and highlight the competitive advantages of AB, namely fuel efficiency and cost savings. Finally, the impact of social influence and peer relations should be further researched and taken into consideration for sales and marketing activities.

The current trend of emissions from the transport sector is unsustainable. To increase cycling mitigates these emissions, while also actively promoting health and alleviating congestion within cities. However, the clear benefits from cycling, along with efforts from municipalities around the world to promote cycling, have not translated in a sufficient change in behavior to reverse the global trends in emissions. Rather than looking at individual behavior, Social Practice Theory (SPT) is concerned with the practice (of cycling) as a whole. Primarily through interviews with international students about their experiences cycling and how they picked up cycling in Uppsala, voted best bike city in Sweden in 2018, I present an analysis of the recruitment process, and the overall practice of cycling in Uppsala through the lens of SPT. In this thesis I found that the pervasiveness of cycling throughout Uppsala and the social networks created by exchange students work together to recruit practitioners and spread the practice of cycling.

This thesis assesses the discourses identified in the literature that is critical to BECCS and its inclusion in IAMs used in the construction of RCP2.6 through a Foucauldian inspired discourse analysis. Within this analysis, there is a recognition of the resilience and civic environmentalism discourses that challenge the dominant and incumbent discourses in climate governance; green governmentality and ecological modernisation.This study has also assessed how the literature has implicitly and explicitly confronted the legitimacy that have offered credibility to the inclusion of BECCS in the construction of IAMs used for the achievement of RCP2.6. The predominately source and process-based legitimacy has been questioned via a thorough amount of research that investigates individual assumptions that are commonplace in said IAMs.

Wetlands provide important ecosystem services (ES) by storing large amounts of organic carbon (OC) and being of high biological, cultural, and economical value. Uganda is covered by vast wetland areas but has with a booming population rapidly been decreasing due to pressure on lands. The aim of this report was to examine important socio-ecological dynamics of rural wetlands in relation to variations of land use in central and eastern Uganda. This by assessing above- (ABG) and belowground (BG) C stocks, soil pH, and capturing provisioning ES and related impacts on soil and vegetation. The methods involved initial spatial analysis followed by two field campaigns with collection of soil samples, biomass measurements and recordings of provisioning ES, following locally developed standardized methods. Laboratory soil analyses included bulk density, loss on ignition and pH. The results shows that the permanent wetland LUC classes store the most total ecosystem C (273.5 to 356.5 t C ha-1), with the BG pool being the largest. It further brings new insights to the much less studied seasonal wetlands that also proves to be an important C stock (331.1 t C ha-1) as well as providing essential ES. In line with previous research, the total ecosystem C and the provisioning ES of wetlands decreases with changing land use management (farmlands 185 to 209; grasslands 125; woodland 120 to 284 t C ha-1). Further knowledge of socio-ecological dynamics of wetlands is needed, especially in seasonal wetlands, to increase sustainable wetland management. This being urgently needed for many communities in Uganda that are dependent on agroecologically-based economies in close relation to wetland ES and vulnerable to climate variations.