Environmental Management
S. Hartini; A.N. Fatliana; N.U. Handayani; P.A. Wicaksono; B.S. Ramadan; T. Matsumoto
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The current literature on tofu production has predominantly focused on exploring the value-added potential of the waste generated during tofu production and conducting impact assessments related to this production. However, a noticeable gap remains in the research concerning ...
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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The current literature on tofu production has predominantly focused on exploring the value-added potential of the waste generated during tofu production and conducting impact assessments related to this production. However, a noticeable gap remains in the research concerning the comprehensive examination of life cycle costs and eco-efficiency in tofu production and its associated waste. This study aims to assess the environmental and economic impacts of the implementation of recycling alternatives using a life cycle assessment and life cycle cost approach. The impact of waste recycling on the eco-efficiency of small and medium-sized enterprises in Sugihmanik Village, Grobogan Regency, Indonesia is also examined.METHODS: To achieve this goal, this study employed life cycle assessment and life cycle cost methodologies to evaluate eco-efficiency. Data were collected through interviews and direct observations. Cradle-to-grave (tofu production) and cradle-to-cradle (tofu production and waste recycling) approaches were compared. Environmental impact was assessed by determining the 12 impact categories. Environmental cost was determined using the eco-cost 2023 method, and environmental and economic impacts were examined with SimaPro software version 9.4.FINDINGS: Life cycle assessment analysis revealed eutrophication, carbon footprint, and freshwater ecotoxicity to be the categories with the most significant impact for each process. In particular, the eco-cost of the cradle-to-grave approach was 7.03 United States dollars, and that of the cradle-to-cradle approach was 7.90 United States dollars. Life cycle cost analysis yielded a net value of 1.33 United States dollars for the cradle-to-grave process and 38.16 United States dollars for the cradle-to-cradle process. According to the life cycle cost analysis, the recycling scheme increased the overall cost of production. Meanwhile, the eco-efficiency analysis demonstrated an increase in the eco-efficiency of tofu production (cradle-to-grave) and the recycling system (cradle-to-cradle). Waste recycling can increase the eco-efficiency index from 0.18 to 5.CONCLUSION: Life cycle assessment identified eutrophication, carbon footprint, and ecotoxicity (freshwater) as the three major impact categories. Proper waste management in tofu production offers environmental benefits and significant profits, with the net value of the cradle-to-cradle process at 38.99 US dollars. The eco-efficiency values showed a substantial positive increase, and the waste processing scenarios were found to be sustainable and economically beneficial. These findings suggest new business opportunities through straightforward waste processing and affordable production costs. The scheme also reduces the environmental impact and increases the efficiency and profit of the overall tofu production system.
Environmental Management
S. Sumiyati; B.P. Samadikun; A. Widiyanti; M.A. Budihardjo; S. Al Qadar; A.S. Puspita
Abstract
Agricultural waste recycling is crucial for sustainable farming operations and farming practices. Life cycle assessment has emerged as an innovative and comprehensive viewpoint that considers the entire recycling process to evaluate the potential and true implications of agricultural waste recycling. ...
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Agricultural waste recycling is crucial for sustainable farming operations and farming practices. Life cycle assessment has emerged as an innovative and comprehensive viewpoint that considers the entire recycling process to evaluate the potential and true implications of agricultural waste recycling. This study considered methods for recycling different agricultural waste streams, such as crop waste, animal manure, pruning materials, and by-products and subsequent uses. Furthermore, the life cycle assessment method was used to investigate the process of handling agricultural waste, from collection and recycling to final usage in the agricultural system. Environmental impact categories, including greenhouse gas emissions, energy usage, eutrophication, acidification, and land use, were evaluated to determine their potential effects on climate change, resource depletion, and ecosystem health. The results were compared with those of 31 studies that analyzed the potential environmental impacts of agricultural waste management. Various methods initially developed and implemented for agricultural waste landfilling methods have now changed to energy-generating sources, such as biochar, biogas, briquettes, and various energy production methods. Furthermore, composting, a popular method of recycling agricultural waste, significantly lowers greenhouse gas emissions and energy use compared to traditional waste disposal techniques. The study also examines cutting-edge technologies, such as anaerobic digestion and biomass-to-energy conversion, highlighting their potential to manage agricultural waste and being a sustainable energy source. These findings indicate potential environmental advantages in terms of decreased greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel consumption, leading to a circular economic approach for agriculture. When integrating agricultural waste, including composting, anaerobic digestion, and pyrolysis, biochar is highlighted as a waste recycling method that is promising for sustainable waste management. In addition to efficiently managing agricultural waste, these technologies help generate electricity and sequester carbon, thereby advancing the objectives of climate change mitigation and circular economy. Although life cycle assessment has been used to analyze several waste management strategies, including those specific to agricultural waste, certain significant gaps and discoveries still require attention for a more thorough analysis. It might be challenging to gather complete and accurate data to assess the entire lifecycle of agricultural waste management technology. The direct environmental effects of waste management are frequently the focus of life cycle assessment studies, but they may overlook secondary effects such as indirect land use change, habitat damage, and biodiversity effects. It is crucial to consider these secondary effects in a more comprehensive analysis.
Environmental Management
J. Simamora; E.I. Wiloso; M. Yani
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Virgin wood fiber and recycled waste paper are the main raw materials for paper production. Virgin wood-fiber paper appears less favorable than recycled paper, as recycled paper generally consumes more natural resources. Some indicators raise questions about the product being ...
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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Virgin wood fiber and recycled waste paper are the main raw materials for paper production. Virgin wood-fiber paper appears less favorable than recycled paper, as recycled paper generally consumes more natural resources. Some indicators raise questions about the product being recycled, including the amount of solid waste produced during production and carbon emissions, which can occasionally be higher than for paper made from virgin fiber, as it may require more energy to operate. This study presents a comparative life cycle assessment of paper production in Indonesia using wood fibers and recycled fiber materials. This life cycle assessment study aimed to compare two comparable products, namely duplex board with 93 percent recycled fiber and folding boxboard with 100 percent wood or virgin fiber raw materials.METHODS: Both products were represented as one metric ton of the final product. The study utilized a cradle-to-grave system and combined primary data from a paper factory in Indonesia with secondary data from the Ecoinvent database, representing processes in background systems. Various impact assessment methods were employed to evaluate the environmental impact, including the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, the Centre for Environmental Studies, International Reference Life Cycle Data System, and the United Nations Environment Program, Society for Environmental Toxicology, and Chemistry toxicity model. All inventory and impact assessments were performed using SimaPro software.FINDINGS: The current study revealed that duplex board is environmentally preferable to folding boxboard across all the impact categories assessed. The results of the impact assessment of global warming potential fossil, acidification, particulates, fossil abiotic depletion, and human toxicity-cancer for duplex board were 1,848.26 kilogram carbon dioxide equivalent, 8.12 kilogram-sulfur-dioxide-equivalent, 2.12 kilogram particulate matter 2.5-equivalent, 14,668.06 megajoule, and 0.0000017 comparative toxic unit, while for folding boxboard 2,651.25 kilogram carbon- dioxide-equivalent, 13.95 kilogram sulfur-dioxide-equivalent, 3.27 kilogram particulate matter 2.5-equivalent, 22,395.81 mega-joule, and 0.0000021 comparative toxic unit, respectively. All impact magnitudes were measured in functional units per 1 ton of paper product.CONCLUSION: The study has revealed the environmental impact of paper products produced in Indonesia. Paper products made from recycled fibers are a more environmentally favorable option when than those produced from virgin fibers. Through further contribution analysis, it was determined that the main contributor to all impact categories in both production systems was fossil-based energy input. Efforts to improve the environmental performance of the two products should focus on enhancing the energy efficiency of the system and incorporating non-fossil fuel energy sources into the production process.
Environmental Management
T. Puspaningrum; N.S. Indrasti; C. Indrawanto; M. Yani
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Coconuts and their derivatives, such as copra and charcoal, are leading commodities of Indonesia contributing to local consumption and exports. Life cycle assessment is a tool for evaluating the inputs, outputs, and potential impacts of a product system throughout its life ...
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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Coconuts and their derivatives, such as copra and charcoal, are leading commodities of Indonesia contributing to local consumption and exports. Life cycle assessment is a tool for evaluating the inputs, outputs, and potential impacts of a product system throughout its life cycle and is associated with product sustainability. The cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment of copra and coconut shell charcoal aims to determine the impacts of coconut, copra, and charcoal production from copra byproducts quantitatively and identify scenario improvements to reduce the impacts and enhance sustainability.METHODS: Field observations were conducted in tall coconuts in Agrabinta, South Cianjur, and in copra and coconut shell charcoal factories in Sukabumi, West Java, Indonesia. The life cycle assessment method comprises the following four stages: goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment, and interpretation. The scope of this study was based on land preparation, nurseries, planting, fertilization, harvesting of mature coconuts, transportation of mature coconuts, copra production, transportation of coconut shells, and charcoal production. Ten impacts were calculated using the Center of Environmental Science of Leiden University Impact Assessment baseline method with Simapro software.FINDINGS: This study obtained ten impact categories, not only the global warming potential impact similar to most studies of perennial crop products in Indonesia. Normalization results showed that the category with enormous impacts on humans from coconut cultivation and copra processing activities had terrestrial ecotoxicity potential. The largest impact on charcoal production was on the human toxicity potential. Separated coconut factories from plantations have a high impact because of high fuel transportation. Four recommendation scenarios were formulated: 1) utilization of smoke from pyrolysis into liquid, 2) implementation of organic coconut cultivation practices, 3) integration of coconut plantations with copra and charcoal processing plants and processing smoke into liquid, and 4) combining scenarios 1, 2, and 3. In scenario 3, seven of ten impacts showed the lowest value among other scenarios. This scenario potentially decreases the impact from 68.35 to 99.62 percent. The human toxic potential of coconut shell charcoal decreased from 2.92 × 105 to 109.43 kilogram 1,4-dichlorobenzene equivalent, terrestrial ecotoxicity potential decreased from 59 to 19 kilogram 1,4-dichlorobenzene equivalent, and the global warming potential decreased from 1753.55 to 93.03 kilogram carbon dioxide equivalent.CONCLUSION: Life cycle assessment can evaluate the impacts of copra and coconut shell charcoal from the coconut cultivation to the production stages. Opportunities for improvement can be identified from the interpretation and hotspots. Scenario analysis results showed the potential of developing integrated coconut agroindustry with coconut plantations, copra factories, and charcoal factories to produce liquid smoke in one location. This integration markedly reduces the impact due to the reduction of transportation fuel and emissions and the treatment of air pollution from pyrolysis.
Environmental Management
J. Prasara-A; A. Bridhikitti
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Cycling has been widely promoted as an alternative mode of transport to help the reduction of environmental impact and improve users' health. Promoting cycling will help enhance the "Green City" initiative in Thailand. While several studies have addressed social issues of cyclists, ...
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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Cycling has been widely promoted as an alternative mode of transport to help the reduction of environmental impact and improve users' health. Promoting cycling will help enhance the "Green City" initiative in Thailand. While several studies have addressed social issues of cyclists, the environmental impacts and economic viability of cycling infrastructure are yet unknown. Quantifying its environmental impact and the costing aspect are essential to prove that cycling would positively affect a city. This study compares the expected environmental and economic impacts before and after constructing a bicycle lane in Mahasarakham, Thailand.METHODS: This study uses life cycle assessment and life cycle costing to assess a bicycle lane's environmental and economic viability. Life cycle assessment and life cycle costing are tools used to analyze environmental impact and cost during the life cycle of a product or service. The scope of this study covers the processing of raw material acquisition, transportation, construction, use, and disposal. The functional unit set for this study is the use of a bicycle lane for one year. The environmental impact examined is greenhouse gas emissions along the product's life cycle (the so-called "carbon footprint").FINDING: According to the results, approximately 0.2 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent of carbon footprint could have been reduced in 2020 had a bicycle lane been installed. The use phase plays the leading role in reducing carbon footprint. The reduction in environmental impacts is due to reduced fuel consumption by cars and motorcycles when bicycles are used. Even though a low rate (26%) of road users, who participated in this research, were willing to ride bikes had a bicycle lane been provided, a considerable amount of environmental impact could still have been reduced.CONCLUSION: The carbon footprint expected to be reduced in a year is valued at about 4.7 million baht of carbon credit. In comparison, the life cycle cost of bicycle lanes for one year is approximately 3.7 million baht. Furthermore, it is anticipated that had a bicycle lane been installed since 2015, the city would have reduced overall carbon footprint emissions by more than 1.15 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2020. Therefore, the results of environmental impact and cost assessment from this study are helpful for urban environmental management.
