Les modèles d’agriculture basés sur un recours massif aux ressources non renouvelables et l’intensification des systèmes de production montrent, des limites susceptibles de remettre en cause l’objectif commun de développement durable. Pourtant ces modèles agricoles se développent dans la plaine du Saïs, notamment dans les exploitations agricoles familiales. Ils apparaissent par le développement de filières rémunératrices conduites intensivement à travers l’irrigation et un faible accompagnement technique. Cette dynamique a conduit à une surexploitation et une pollution des nappes souterraines et à la fluctuation des prix des produits agricoles. La durabilité des exploitations familiales, se trouve ainsi questionnée, d’autant que la politique agricole de l’Etat marocain encourage les agriculteurs à l’intensification. Ce questionnement général a été décliné en trois sous-questions de recherche, abordant chacune la durabilité des exploitations agricoles familiales sous un angle différent. Ces sous-questions ont été explorées sur un même échantillon de 40 exploitations, choisies pour leur diversité de système de production, en mobilisant différents outils d’analyses. La première sous-question analyse la durabilité des exploitations agricoles sous l’angle de leurs dynamiques d’évolution depuis 60 ans. Sept types de trajectoires d’évolution ont été identifiés en fonction de plusieurs moteurs internes et externes aux exploitations. Ces trajectoires ont débouché sur trois principaux types actuels d’exploitations se différenciant par leurs activités de production. T1 regroupe des exploitations proches du système traditionnel initial, sur des terres n’ayant pas d’accès à l’eau; T2 rassemble des exploitations ayant accès à l’irrigation et maintenant une diversité de productions; T3 rassemble des exploitations spécialisées. La deuxième sous-question cherche à évaluer la durabilité des exploitations agricoles familiales et à en formaliser les déterminants, en mobilisant un regard de chercheur. Cette analyse s’est basée sur une méthode d’évaluation de la durabilité (IDEA), adaptée au contexte du Saïs. La durabilité environnementale dépend de la diversification des activités et de l’autonomie de l’exploitation, la durabilité socio-territoriale est liée au degré d’engagement de l’agriculteur dans les dynamiques territoriales, et la durabilité économique est fonction du système de production et des facteurs structurels de l’exploitation. Cependant, la tendance générale montre un antagonisme entre durabilité environnementale et durabilité économique. La troisième sous-question explore les perceptions qu’ont les agriculteurs du concept de durabilité et la manière dont elles se traduisent dans leurs stratégies de gestion. Un premier groupe d’agriculteurs perçoit la durabilité à travers la combinaison entre rentabilité et maintien des ressources naturelles de l’exploitation. Ils mettent en œuvre une stratégie de sécurisation du revenu à l’aide de pratiques peu intensives. Un deuxième groupe lie la durabilité à la rentabilité et l’adaptation aux changements externes à l’exploitation. Ils appliquent une stratégie de valorisation de la flexibilité de l’exploitation pour saisir les opportunités du milieu. Enfin, un troisième groupe perçoit la durabilité à travers la réalisation d’un modèle agricole moderniste. Ils réalisent une stratégie entrepreneuriale par la maximisation de leur revenu. Cette étude montre à la fois des points de divergence et de convergence sur le concept de durabilité et sa mise en œuvre en agriculture, entre chercheurs et agriculteurs par exemple sur les pratiques de production ou l’accès aux ressources naturelles. Pour combler cet écart de perceptions entre les différentes parties prenantes, des mesures de régulation environnementale, de vulgarisation et d’accompagnement doivent être envisagées collectivement, par les agriculteurs, les autorités et la recherche. / Agriculture based on the massive use of non-renewable resources and the intensification of production systems show its limits, which question this development path. Yet this agricultural model has been developed in the Saïs plain, particularly in family farms. This development has resulted in the development of income-generating sectors that are intensively managed, with few technical supports. This dynamic has led to a groundwater overexploitation and pollution, and price fluctuations of agricultural products. The sustainability of family farms is questioned, especially since Moroccan agricultural policy encourages an intensive development path. This issue has been studied based on three sub-questions, each addressing the sustainability of family farms from a different perspective. These sub-questions were investigated thanks to a sample of 40 farms, chosen for their diversity of production systems. We used different tools for the data analysis.The first sub-question dealt with the sustainability of farms related to their evolving dynamics over the past 60 years. Seven pathways were identified based on several internal and external drivers. These pathways have resulted currently in three main farm types, differing in their production activities. T1 includes farms close to the original traditional system, based on land without a groundwater access; T2 gather farms cultivating a diversity of irrigated productions; T3 gather specialized farms.The second sub-question aims to evaluate the sustainability of family farms and to formalize its determinants, by mobilizing a research viewpoint. This analysis was based on a sustainability assessment tool (IDEA), adapted to the context of Saïs. Environmental sustainability depends on the diversification of activities and farm autonomy degree; socio-territorial sustainability is linked to the degree of farmer involvement in the territorial dynamics; and economic sustainability depends on the production system and the farm’ structural factors. However, general trend shows an antagonism between environmental and economic sustainability.The third sub-question explores farmers' perceptions of sustainability and how these perceptions influence their management strategies. A first group of farmers perceives sustainability through the combination of profitability and farm natural resources preservation. They implement a strategy of income security and low intensive practices. A second group links sustainability to profitability and adaptation to farms external changes. They implement a strategy of farm flexibility to seize opportunities. Finally, a third group perceives sustainability through modernist agricultural model. They implement an entrepreneurial strategy, based on maximization of income.This study shows both divergence and convergence viewpoints of sustainability concept and its implementation in agriculture, between researchers and farmers, for instance on production practices or access to natural resources. To fill this gap between the various stakeholder’s perceptions, environmental regulation, extension and accompanying measures must be considered collectively by farmers, authorities and researchers.

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo geral propor um método monetário de avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial que contemple as dimensões econômica, ambiental e social. Para tanto, se propõe a: (i) estudar de forma exploratória o tema avaliação da sustentabilidade a fim de proporcionar uma maior familiarização com o mesmo e identificar suas lacunas; (ii) identificar a estrutura de avaliação da sustentabilidade a ser utilizada como base; (iii) monetizar os itens de avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial; (iv) avaliar e aprimorar o método desenvolvido através da análise de especialistas e da aplicação do mesmo na realidade de uma empresa. O método proposto permite a avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial em uma unidade de medida comumente utilizada pelas empresas, simples e compreensível, a unidade monetária, que possibilita a comparação direta em bases homogêneas. Além disso, a unidade monetária é muito importante para as empresas, visto que seu objetivo é gerar retorno financeiro. A avaliação global do desempenho da empresa é dada pelo soma dos custos ambientais e sociais e dos benefícios econômicos gerados. Quando o resultado for negativo, significa que os custos causados pela empresa são maiores que os benefícios e, portanto, a operação da mesma não traz vantagens para a sociedade, sendo recomendado que reverta essa situação ou pare de operar. Por outro lado, quando os benefícios forem maiores que os custos, a operação da empresa agrega valor para a sociedade. Entretanto, ressalta-se que a empresa deve sempre focar em minimizar custos ambientais e sociais. Assim, o método proposto contribui para orientar as empresas na busca de formas de atuação socialmente e ambientalmente benéficas, uma vez que orienta a diminuição dos custos relacionados a essas dimensões. O método demonstra como monetizar os itens de avaliação, a partir de dados da empresa e estimativas. Entende-se que o desafio de desenvolver um método com esta finalidade é grande, devido à complexidade das dimensões social, ambiental e econômica. Consequentemente, este trabalho apresenta uma estrutura completa de avaliação monetária da sustentabilidade empresarial, mas que deve ser considerada preliminar, aberta a complementações e aprimoramentos. / This study's main objective is to propose a corporate sustainability assessment monetary model that addresses the economic, environmental and social dimensions. For this, the thesis intends: (i) to study the sustainability assessment and identify gaps, (ii) to identify a framework for sustainability assessment to be used as a basis, (iii) to monetize the assessment items, (iv) to evaluate and improve the method through expert analysis and field application. The proposed model allows the corporate sustainability assessment in a unit of measure commonly used by companies, simple and understandable, the monetary unit, which allows direct comparison on homogeneous bases. Moreover, the monetary unit is very important for companies, since their goal is to generate financial return. The overall company assessment performance is given by the sum of the environmental and social costs and economic benefits. When the result is negative, it means that the costs incurred by the company are greater than the benefits, so the operation does not bring benefits to society and is recommended to reverse this situation or stop trading. On the other hand, when the benefits outweigh the costs, the operation of the company adds value to society. However, it is emphasized that the company should always focus on minimizing environmental and social costs. Thus, the model helps to guide companies on ways of acting socially and environmentally beneficial, since it guides the cost decrease in these dimensions. The model demonstrates how to monetize the assessment items from the enterprise data and estimates. It is understood that the challenge of developing a model for this purpose is large due to the complexity of social, environmental and economic issues. Consequently, this paper presents a complete corporate sustainability monetary assessment that should be considered a preliminary attempt, open to additions and improvements.

abstract: One of the key infrastructures of any community or facility is the energy system which consists of utility power plants, distributed generation technologies, and building heating and cooling systems. In general, there are two dimensions to “sustainability” as it applies to an engineered system. It needs to be designed, operated, and managed such that its environmental impacts and costs are minimal (energy efficient design and operation), and also be designed and configured in a way that it is resilient in confronting disruptions posed by natural, manmade, or random events. In this regard, development of quantitative sustainability metrics in support of decision-making relevant to design, future growth planning, and day-to-day operation of such systems would be of great value. In this study, a pragmatic performance-based sustainability assessment framework and quantitative indices are developed towards this end whereby sustainability goals and concepts can be translated and integrated into engineering practices. New quantitative sustainability indices are proposed to capture the energy system environmental impacts, economic performance, and resilience attributes, characterized by normalized environmental/health externalities, energy costs, and penalty costs respectively. A comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment is proposed which includes externalities due to emissions from different supply and demand-side energy systems specific to the regional power generation energy portfolio mix. An approach based on external costs, i.e. the monetized health and environmental impacts, was used to quantify adverse consequences associated with different energy system components. Further, this thesis also proposes a new performance-based method for characterizing and assessing resilience of multi-functional demand-side engineered systems. Through modeling of system response to potential internal and external failures during different operational temporal periods reflective of diurnal variation in loads and services, the proposed methodology quantifies resilience of the system based on imposed penalty costs to the system stakeholders due to undelivered or interrupted services and/or non-optimal system performance. A conceptual diagram called “Sustainability Compass” is also proposed which facilitates communicating the assessment results and allow better decision-analysis through illustration of different system attributes and trade-offs between different alternatives. The proposed methodologies have been illustrated using end-use monitored data for whole year operation of a university campus energy system. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering 2018

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo geral propor um método monetário de avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial que contemple as dimensões econômica, ambiental e social. Para tanto, se propõe a: (i) estudar de forma exploratória o tema avaliação da sustentabilidade a fim de proporcionar uma maior familiarização com o mesmo e identificar suas lacunas; (ii) identificar a estrutura de avaliação da sustentabilidade a ser utilizada como base; (iii) monetizar os itens de avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial; (iv) avaliar e aprimorar o método desenvolvido através da análise de especialistas e da aplicação do mesmo na realidade de uma empresa. O método proposto permite a avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial em uma unidade de medida comumente utilizada pelas empresas, simples e compreensível, a unidade monetária, que possibilita a comparação direta em bases homogêneas. Além disso, a unidade monetária é muito importante para as empresas, visto que seu objetivo é gerar retorno financeiro. A avaliação global do desempenho da empresa é dada pelo soma dos custos ambientais e sociais e dos benefícios econômicos gerados. Quando o resultado for negativo, significa que os custos causados pela empresa são maiores que os benefícios e, portanto, a operação da mesma não traz vantagens para a sociedade, sendo recomendado que reverta essa situação ou pare de operar. Por outro lado, quando os benefícios forem maiores que os custos, a operação da empresa agrega valor para a sociedade. Entretanto, ressalta-se que a empresa deve sempre focar em minimizar custos ambientais e sociais. Assim, o método proposto contribui para orientar as empresas na busca de formas de atuação socialmente e ambientalmente benéficas, uma vez que orienta a diminuição dos custos relacionados a essas dimensões. O método demonstra como monetizar os itens de avaliação, a partir de dados da empresa e estimativas. Entende-se que o desafio de desenvolver um método com esta finalidade é grande, devido à complexidade das dimensões social, ambiental e econômica. Consequentemente, este trabalho apresenta uma estrutura completa de avaliação monetária da sustentabilidade empresarial, mas que deve ser considerada preliminar, aberta a complementações e aprimoramentos. / This study's main objective is to propose a corporate sustainability assessment monetary model that addresses the economic, environmental and social dimensions. For this, the thesis intends: (i) to study the sustainability assessment and identify gaps, (ii) to identify a framework for sustainability assessment to be used as a basis, (iii) to monetize the assessment items, (iv) to evaluate and improve the method through expert analysis and field application. The proposed model allows the corporate sustainability assessment in a unit of measure commonly used by companies, simple and understandable, the monetary unit, which allows direct comparison on homogeneous bases. Moreover, the monetary unit is very important for companies, since their goal is to generate financial return. The overall company assessment performance is given by the sum of the environmental and social costs and economic benefits. When the result is negative, it means that the costs incurred by the company are greater than the benefits, so the operation does not bring benefits to society and is recommended to reverse this situation or stop trading. On the other hand, when the benefits outweigh the costs, the operation of the company adds value to society. However, it is emphasized that the company should always focus on minimizing environmental and social costs. Thus, the model helps to guide companies on ways of acting socially and environmentally beneficial, since it guides the cost decrease in these dimensions. The model demonstrates how to monetize the assessment items from the enterprise data and estimates. It is understood that the challenge of developing a model for this purpose is large due to the complexity of social, environmental and economic issues. Consequently, this paper presents a complete corporate sustainability monetary assessment that should be considered a preliminary attempt, open to additions and improvements.

Proposta: o setor da construção civil é responsável por grande parte do consumo de energia e recursos e da geração de resíduos, provocando impactos significativos sobre o meio ambiente. Algumas alternativas para se construir, reduzindo os impactos, envolvem o uso de materiais renováveis, como a palha, e de materiais minimamente processados, como a terra. Contudo, estes materiais pouco são referidos nos sistemas de classificação de edifícios ambientalmente amigáveis. Muitos edifícios, rotulados como sustentáveis, apenas refletem esforços para reduzir a energia incorporada e são, em muitos outros aspectos, convencionais. Objetivo: considerando a lacuna identificada, o objetivo deste trabalho é realizar uma avaliação de sustentabilidade de uma habitação de interesse social, construída no meio rural, com fardos de palha, terra e cobertura verde. Metodologia de pesquisa: a estratégia geral de pesquisa utilizada foi o levantamento de um caso. A definição dos critérios de avaliação foi embasada naqueles tradicionalmente incluídos em métodos existentes, porém as formas de caracterização foram adaptadas a dados e procedimentos acessíveis ao contexto nacional. Além de critérios ambientais, foram incluídos outros, econômicos e sociais, devido à importância de uma abordagem pluridimensional. A apresentação dos resultados dos critérios ambientais em três escalas (da edificação, dos subsistemas e dos materiais) permite identificar os subsistemas e materiais com maior potencial de impactos, explicitando os pontos fracos da habitação, além de facilitar a comparação, total ou parcial, com os resultados obtidos em pesquisas semelhantes. Resultados: verificou-se a incorporação de grande quantidade de materiais que produzem emissões tóxicas, além de apresentarem um alto consumo energético para transporte. Em contrapartida, devido à utilização, predominante, de recursos pouco processados, identificou-se um baixo dispêndio de energia para manufatura de materiais e um potencial de reaproveitamento satisfatório. Os custos iniciais da edificação são baixos, em relação a habitações de interesse social construídas com materiais convencionais, e medianos, em relação àquelas que empregam materiais não convencionais. Em termos sociais, verificou-se que as soluções adotadas são adequadas para a autoconstrução e para o resgate da capacidade de trabalho em mutirão, e que o projeto não atende requisitos mínimos de acessibilidade. / Proposal: the construction industry is responsible for a large consumption of energy and resources, and produces a large amount of wastes, determining considerable environmental impacts. Some alternatives to build in a way to reduce environmental impacts include the use of renewable materials and the use of materials which require minimum amount of processing, such as straw and earth. Nevertheless, these materials are hardly ever referred to in green building classification systems. Many buildings classified as environmentally friendly or green may simply reflect efforts to reduce the embodied energy and are, in most other aspects, conventional. Objective: considering the identified gap, this work’s aim is to evaluate a low-income rural house, built with straw bales, earth and a green roof. Methods: the assessment criteria definition was based on those traditionally included in existent methods, but adapted in accordance to national acessible data and proceedings. Besides environmental criteria, others like social and economics, were included. The results presentation in three analysis scales (of the construction, as a whole, of the subsystems and of the materials) allows the identification of the potencially most impacting materials and subsystems, expliciting the dwelling weak points, and facilitates total or partial comparision with other similar researchs results. Findings: a large number of materials that emit toxic gases, besides having a high energy consumption for materials transport, was identified. However, due to the predominant use of materials with a minimum processing, a low energy consumption for materials production and a sactisfatory reuse potential was identified. The dwelling’s initial costs are low, if compared to low-income houses built with conventional materials, becoming average, in regard to those built with non-convetional materials. In social terms, it was verified that the construction solutions are suitable to self-building and to rescue the ability of working cooperatively, and that the dwelling’s design does not supply the minimum requirement for spatial acessibility.

The sugarcane cultivation in Brazil is one of the leading economic pillars, as it is an ethanol precursor, a renewable fuel produced in industrial markets as a substitute for fossil fuels. Brazil produces about 27.44% and 43% of the world production of ethanol and sugar, respectively. São Paulo state has the environmental and logistic conditions for a sugarcane industry, both characteristics turn it the main Brazilian\'s sugarcane production pole, with 63.74% of sugar and 48.23% of ethanol production (RFA, 2017). In São Paulo, the Agro-Environmental Zoning establishes the areas to cultivate sugarcane. However, tools to check the sugarcane industry influences on municipalities\' socioeconomic aspects are superficial. Considering sugarcane industry importance to São Paulo state and Brazil, the Nucleus of Research and Extension on Sustainability and Sanitation initiated different investigations and efforts to study, analyze, and predict the sugarcane industry\'s impacts and sustainability. Within this research\'s general line, the focused was on environmental impacts with emphasis on their accumulation and synergy, climate change scenarios, sustainability concept management among its stakeholders, industry\'s governance, mill unit\'s sustainability evaluation, and so forth. In this context, it appears as a necessary and conclusive step the sustainability assessment tool\'s development, allowing sugarcane industry evaluation, while respecting the individual circumstances. Therefore, this project objective is to develop a sustainability assessment model to sugarcane sector decision-making implemented in an atlas format. The sustainability assessment model includes eighteen indicators about environmental, social, economic, and municipal policies issues. Those indicators describe seven of the eight Gibson\'s principles. It was the principles grouped according to their indicators\' nature in three domains (environmental, socioeconomic, and municipal policies) that finally compose the sustainability index. Some indicators are considered elimination factors to avoid the trade-off between principles and domains, because more than limiting the calculus\' next level, they cut the unsustainable situations by classifying them as such. In the end, the atlas present twelve maps that describe the distribution of principles, domains, and sustainability index across São Paulo state. The results show that the sugarcane ethanol sector still faces new environmental and social impacts, while the Agro-environmental Zoning presents a limited contribution to sustainability. According to the model, environmental issues (Domain A) there are new areas where sugarcane must be forbidden or, at least, increase its requirement for water quality improvement. Nevertheless, half of the state of São Paulo has the environmental condition for sugarcane cultivars. For socioeconomic issues (Domain B), most municipalities presented a moderate performance. In the Domain C few municipalities reached the very high-performance, while the high-performance stood out for being the main one. In both, the Domain B and the Domain C, moderate and high are the significant municipalities\' performances. The atlas format results in a useful instrument, because it is easy to understand, can deliver a full state context and regions contrast, as well it brings a specific outcome for each municipality, and in case of environmental issues it also presents more precise details according to natural limits. Finally, the sensitivity analysis showed that the social indicators explain the results in 19.2%, while the municipal policy indicators influence 15.7% and the economic indicators 5.7%. The environmental indicators correspond to 59.4%, with indicator A3 (water quality) accounting for 19.7%. / O cultivo da cana-de-açúcar no Brasil é um dos principais pilares da economia do país, pois é um precursor de etanol, combustível renovável produzido em quantidades industriais como substituto de combustíveis fósseis. O Brasil produz cerca de 27.44% e 43% da produção mundial de etanol e açúcar, respectivamente. O Estado de São Paulo tem as condições ambientais e logísticas para a indústria da cana-de-açúcar, e ambas as características o tornaram o principal polo de produção no Brasil com 63.74% de açúcar e 48.23% de produções de etanol (RFA, 2017). Em São Paulo, o Zoneamento Agro-Ambiental (AENZ) estabelece as áreas onde a cana-de-açúcar pode ser plantada, considerando critérios ambientais. No entanto, ferramentas para avaliar as influências sobre os aspectos socioeconômicos dos municípios onde as culturas e indústrias de cana-deaçúcar estão inseridas são ainda superficiais. Considerando a importância da indústria da cana-de-açúcar para o Estado de São Paulo e Brasil, o Núcleo de Pesquisa e Extensão de Sustentabilidade e Saneamento iniciou diferentes investigações e esforços para estudar, analisar e prever os impactos e a sustentabilidade da indústria da cana-de-açúcar. Dentro desta linha geral de pesquisa, o foco foi sobre os impactos ambientais com ênfase em sua acumulação e sinergia, cenários de mudança climática, gerenciamento de conceito de sustentabilidade entre os stakeholders, governança do setor, avaliação de sustentabilidade de usinas, etc. Neste contexto, parece ser um passo necessário e conclusivo o desenvolvimento de uma ferramenta de avaliação de sustentabilidade, que permita a avaliação da indústria da cana-de-açúcar, respeitando as circunstâncias particulares de cada região. Portanto, o objetivo deste projeto é desenvolver um modelo de avaliação de sustentabilidade para a tomada de decisão do setor de cana-de-açúcar operacionalizado em um atlas. O modelo de avaliação de sustentabilidade inclui dezoito indicadores sobre questões de políticas municipais, ambientais, sociais e econômicas. Esses indicadores descrevem sete dos oito princípios de Gibson. Foram os princípios agrupados de acordo com a natureza de seus indicadores em três domínios (políticas ambientais, socioeconômicas e municipais) que finalmente compõem um índice de sustentabilidade. Alguns indicadores são considerados fatores de eliminação para evitar o trade-off entre princípios e domínios, porque mais do que limitar o próximo nível do cálculo, eles eliminam as situações insustentáveis, classificando-as como tal. No final, o atlas apresenta doze mapas que descrevem a distribuição de princípios, domínios e índice de sustentabilidade em todo o estado de São Paulo. Os resultados mostram que o setor de etanol de cana ainda enfrenta novos impactos ambientais e sociais, enquanto o Zoneamento Agroambiental apresenta uma contribuição limitada para a sustentabilidade. De acordo com o modelo, em relação às características ambientais (Domínio A), existem novas áreas onde a cana-de-açúcar deve ser proibida ou, pelo menos, se deve aumentar as exigências para a melhoria da qualidade da água. No entanto, metade do estado de São Paulo tem a condição ambiental para as cultivares de cana-de-açúcar. Em questões socioeconômicas (Domínio B), a maioria dos municípios apresentou desempenho moderado. No domínio C, poucos municípios atingiram o muito alto desempenho, enquanto o alto desempenho se destacou por ser o principal. Em ambos, o Domínio B e o Domínio C, moderado e alto são os desempenhos significativos dos municípios. O formato do atlas resulta em um instrumento útil, porque é fácil de entender, pode oferecer um contexto de estado completo e o contraste de regiões, além disso traz um resultado específico para cada município e, em caso de problemas ambientais, também apresenta detalhes mais precisos de acordo com os limites naturais. Finalmente, a análise de sensibilidade mostrou que os indicadores sociais explicam os resultados em 19.2%, enquanto os indicadores da política municipal influenciam 15.7% e os indicadores econômicos 6.7%. Os indicadores ambientais correspondem a 59.4%, com o indicador A3 (qualidade da água) representando 19.7%.

Forest is a resource that is increasingly utilized for multiple purposes. The balance between energy demands and the long-term capacity of ecosystems to support biodiversity and other ecosystem services is crucial. The aim of this project was to increase the knowledge on and to develop methods and tools for trade-offs and synergies analysis among forest ecosystem services based on different forest management policies. Paper I provides an overview of existing models for integrated energy-environment assessment. A literature review was conducted on assessment models and their ability to integrate energy with environmental aspects. Missing environmental aspects concern land use, landscapes and biodiversity. In Paper II a modelling framework was set up to link a landscape simulator with a habitat network model for integrated assessment of bioenergy feedstock and biodiversity related impacts in Kronoberg County. In Paper III we continued with the same management scenarios, while the analysis was expanded to five ecosystem services by developing the Landscape simulation and Ecological Assessment (LEcA) tool: industrial wood, bioenergy, forest carbon stock, recreation areas and habitat networks. In Paper IV we present two heuristic methods for spatial optimization – simulated annealing (SA) and genetic algorithm (GA) – to find optimal solutions for allocating harvest activities, in order to minimize the impacts on habitat networks. In Paper V, as response to the findings in Paper I, we linked the energy model MESSAGE with our LEcA tool for forest bioenergy demand assessment while applying environmental and transport restrictions, in a study of Lithuania. We found trade-offs between industrial wood production and bioenergy on one side, and recreation values, biodiversity, and to some extent carbon storage on the other side. The LEcA tool integrated forest simulation and management with assessment of ecosystem services, which is promising for integrated sustainability assessment of forest management policies. / <p>QC 20171023</p>

This study deals with the topic of restaurant sustainability in Czech context. The aim of the research was to set criteria for a Czech sustainable restaurant and also to reveal main barriers and opportunities for sustainable operation of a restaurant. The sustainable restaurant criteria were based on an analysis and comparison of four foreign methods of sustainability assessment in the sector of food services (FOODSCALE, Sustainable Restaurant Association, Green Restaurant Association and the Green Seal's GS-55 Standard), one Czech concept of restaurant sustainability, an analysis of good practices in fifteen foreign "sustainable restaurants" and an analysis of interviews with four Czech experts in the field of sustainable development and gastronomy. Based on this data the final Sustainable Restaurant Criteria were established, comprised of 102 criteria, classified into 5 main categories and 26 subcategories. The criteria were then described in detail, in view of the Czech context. The barriers and opportunities for the operation of Czech sustainable restaurant, defined by the above mentioned criteria, were identified from interviews realised with eight restaurateurs, who are already meeting some of the criteria, and therefore are one of the most progressive in Czech Republic in this field. From...

The multi-utility tunnel has received increased attention as an alternative method for the installation of subsurface infrastructure for the distribution of electricity, water, sewage and district heating. In previous research, the multi-utility tunnel (MUT) has been described as a more sustainable technology compared to the conventionally used technique where the cables and pipes are placed with open-cut excavation (OCE), especially when the entire life cycle is taken into account. This thesis aims to contribute to an improved understanding of MUT's sustainability performance in relation to conventional installation using open-cut excavation. This is done by using literature study, interview study and quantitative sustainability assessments to gain an understanding of the current state of knowledge. Furthermore, this thesis also focuses on how knowledge can be deepened with the help of quantitative sustainability assessments and the challenges of conducting this type of assessment. This thesis shows that the state of knowledge regarding MUT's sustainability performance is low and scattered, with a lack of a holistic approach. Direct economic performance has gained the most attention, followed by indirect and social impact, and the environmental impact has so far barely been assessed. The sustainability performance depends to a large extent on the conditions of the specific case, and these should be considered when assessing the technology. Quantitative assessments have the potential to help deepen the knowledge of the sustainability implications of using MUT. The characteristics of MUT have some similarities with other types of physical infrastructure. Similarities are that the systems are long-lived, have project conditions that affect sustainability performance, and impact a broad spectrum of actors. One difference to typical infrastructure systems is that the owner and management structure of MUT is, by design, more complex as several types of utility systems are in use. The characteristics of MUT give some practical considerations that need to be addressed: data availability, including practitioners; detailed data; transparency; and flexibility. This thesis highlights the complexity of assessing MUT´s sustainability performance and advocates that future studies should have a learning-oriented approach so that the knowledge level can collectively and gradually improve over time rather than focusing on decision-oriented studies. / <p><strong>Funding agencies:</strong> Kampradstiftelsen</p>

Comparing the future state of natural capital and ecosystem services with quantitative scenarios  is essential in the decision-making process for a sustainable management of forest landscapes. In Sweden, an intensified forest management will likely be necessary to meet future demands of woody biomass as a source of bioenergy and building materials. At the same time an intensified forest harvest can cause conflicts with goals  for biodiversity conservation and reduce the amount of carbon being stored the forest. This study conducted a scenario analysis to evaluate how different types of forest management would affect changes in carbon stock between the above ground biomass in a Swedish forest and the biomass harvested from the forest. Potential conflicts between the harvesting scenarios and the in Sweden critically endangered White-backed Woodpecker (Dendrocopos leucotos) was also evaluated. The White-backed Woodpecker can be seen as an umbrella species, which means that there are about 200 other endangered plant and animal species that depend on the same kind of forest environments and could therefore be a measure of the state of the forest biodiversity in Sweden.  The forest landscape model LANDIS-II was used to simulate vegetation dynamics in species composition, age structure and biomass while considering disturbances only from harvesting. The simulation had a 100-year timeframe and used initial conditions gathered from a previous case study done in Sweden. The IPCC’s representative concentration pathway 4.5 was used to simulate impact from climate change. A business as usual scenario was simulated along with an intensified harvesting scenario and a conservation scenario to evaluate the impact on carbon sequestration in the aboveground  biomass  and the impact on the White-backed Woodpecker  habitat  between different forest management scenarios. The change in the stored and harvested carbon was calculated using the Carbon Stock Change Method and by comparing the initial biomass values with the values from the last ten years of the simulation. A habitat suitability score was made with respect to two key habitat requirements for the White-backed Woodpecker (1) the fraction of deciduous trees in the forest; and (2) the age structure of the forest.   From the result it was found that the carbon stock change in the forest was relatively stable for all the simulated scenarios during the 100-year period. The forest carbon stock for the intensified harvesting scenario was 1.04 of the initial carbon stock of the simulation while business as usual was 1.08 and the conservation scenario 1.10.  A conservation scenario would therefore be preferable if the forest landscape is to be used mainly as a carbon sink. If biomass extraction is to be increased to meet future demands for bioenergy and woody products, it should be noted that the intensified harvesting led to a 23.6 increase of the initial biomass harvest values while business as usual had a 4.2 increase and the conservation scenario a 3.1 increase. The result also suggests that increasing the proportions of deciduous and old forest to recreate  the White-backed Woodpecker’s preferred habitat require considerable time and effort and cannot likely be achieved with the current business as usual scenario nor with the intensified harvesting or conservation scenarios simulated in this study. Thus, a more ambitious and targeted restoration effort is needed if the species is to be preserved.   How the forest should be sustainably managed in the future depends on which interests takes priority in decision-making. However, a forest landscape model can provide valuable information throughout the management process so that more informed decisions can be made while also saving  time, money and resources better used elsewhere. / Att jämföra det framtida tillståndet för naturkapital och ekosystemtjänster med kvantitativa scenarier är väsentligt i beslutsprocessen för en hållbar förvaltning av skogslandskap. I Sverige kommer sannolikt ett intensifierat skogsbruk att bli nödvändigt för att möta framtida krav på biomassa till bioenergi och byggmaterial. Samtidigt kan en intensifierad skogsavverkning orsaka konflikter med målet att bevara biologisk mångfald och öka mängden kol lagrad i skogen. Denna studie genomförde en scenarioanalys för att utvärdera hur olika typer av skogsskötsel påverkar i kolbalansen i en svensk skog och mängden biomassa som avverkas från skogen. Potentiella konflikter mellan skogsskötsel och den i Sverige kritiskt hotade vitryggiga hackspetten (Dendrocopos leucotos) utvärderades också. Den vitryggiga hackspetten kan ses som en paraplyart, vilket innebär att det finns cirka 200 andra hotade växt- och djurarter som är beroende av samma sorts skogsmiljöer, och den kan därför vara ett mått på tillståndet för den skogsknutna biologiska mångfalden i Sverige. Skogslandskapsmodellen LANDIS-II användes för att simulera vegetationsdynamik för artsammansättning, åldersstruktur och biomassa samtidigt som man beaktade störningar endast från avverkning. Simuleringen gjorde för en 100-årsperiod och använde initiala förutsättningar från en tidigare fallstudie gjord i Sverige. IPCC:s representativa koncentrationsväg 4.5 användes för att simulera påverkan från klimatförändringar. Ett "business as usual"-scenario simulerades tillsammans med ett intensifierat avverkningsscenario och ett bevarandescenario för att utvärdera påverkan på kolbindning i den stående biomassan och påverkan på habitat för vitryggig hackspett mellan olika skogsskötselscenarier. Förändringen i det lagrade kolet beräknades med hjälp av ”Carbon Stock Change”-metoden och genom att jämföra de initiala biomassavärdena med värdena från de senaste tio åren av simuleringen. Ett habitatlämplighetspoäng gjordes med avseende på två viktiga habitatkrav för vitryggig hackspett (1) andelen lövträd i skogen; och (2) skogens åldersstruktur. Av resultatet visade det sig att kolförrådets förändring i skogen var relativt stabil för alla de simulerade scenarierna under 100-årsperioden. Skogens kollager för det intensifierade avverkningsscenariot var 1,04 av simuleringens initiala värden medan ”business as usual” var 1,08 och bevarandescenariot 1,10. Ett bevarandescenario vore därför att föredra om skogslandskapet främst ska användas som kolsänka. Om biomassautvinningen ska ökas för att möta framtida krav på bioenergi och träprodukter bör det noteras att den intensifierade avverkningen ledde till en ökning med 23,6 av de initiala skördevärdena för biomassa medan ”business as usual” hade en ökning med 4,2 och bevarandescenariot med 3,1. Resultatet tyder också på att en ökning av andelen lövskog och gammal skog för att återskapa vitryggig hackspetts föredragna habitat kräver avsevärd tid och ansträngning och sannolikt inte kan uppnås med det nuvarande scenariot med ”business as usual” eller med de intensifierade avverknings- eller bevarandescenarierna som simuleras i detta studie. Det behövs alltså en mer ambitiös och målinriktad restaureringsinsats om arten ska bevaras. Hur skogen ska skötas hållbart i framtiden beror på vilka intressen som prioriteras i beslutsfattandet. En skogslandskapsmodell kan dock ge värdefull information under hela skötselprocessen så att mer informerade beslut kan fattas samtidigt som det sparar tid, pengar och resurser som kan användas bättre på annat håll.