This work analyzes the environmental impacts of milk production in an intensive dairy farm situated in the Northern Italy region of the Po Valley. Three manure management scenarios are compared: in Scenario 1 the animal slurry is stored in an open tank and then used as fertilizer. In scenario 2 the manure is processed in an anaerobic digestion plant and the biogas produced is combusted in an in...

A spring calving herd consisting of about 350 beef cows, 14-16 breeding bulls, 60 replacement heifers and 112 steers were used to compare the whole-farm GHG emissions among calf-fed vs. yearling-fed production systems with and without growth implants. Carbon footprint ranged from 11.63 to 13.22 kg CO₂e per kg live weight (19.87-22.52 kg CO₂e per kg carcass weight). Enteric CH₄ was the largest s...

Following the Kyoto Protocol, the European Union obligated itself to lower its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 20% below their 1990 level, by the year 2020. Carbon dioxide is the major GHG. To fulfill this obligation, the nations must meet the sustainability challenge of countering rising population plus affluence with the dematerialization of less energy per GDP plus the decarbonization of less...

Our society faces the pressing challenge of increasing agricultural production while minimizing negative consequences on ecosystems and the global climate. Indonesia, which has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from deforestation while doubling production of several major agricultural commodities, exemplifies this challenge. Here we focus on palm oil, the world's most abundant ve...

For greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by the Chinese economy in 2007 with the most recent statistics availability, a concrete inventory covering CO2, CH4, and N2O is composed and associated with an input–output analysis to reveal the emission embodiment in final consumption and international trade. The estimated total direct GHG emission amounts to 7456.12 Mt CO2-eq by the commonly referred IPCC g...

Requirements for mitigation of the continued increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are much needed for the North China Plain (NCP). We conducted a meta-analysis of 76 published studies of 24 sites in the NCP to examine the effects of natural conditions and farming practices on GHG emissions in that region. We found that N2O was the main component of the area-scaled total GHG balance, and t...

The environmental impacts of livestock production are attracting increasing attention, especially the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Currently, pork is the most widely consumed meat product in the world, and its production is expected to grow in the next few decades. This paper deals with the production of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) by animals and by manur...

To establish a micro foundation to understand the impacts of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission regulations and financial development levels on firms' GHG emissions, we build a two-stage dynamic game model to incorporate GHG emission regulations (in terms of an emission tax) and financial development (represented by the corresponding financing cost) into a two-echelon supply chain. With the subgame ...

Global climate change caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which severely limits the development of human society and threatens the survival of humanity, has drawn the international community's long-term attention. Gathering the most important production factors in the region, an industrial park usually represents the development level of specific industries in the region. Therefore, the i...

Food consumption accounts for an important proportion of the world GHG emissions per capita. Previous studies have delved into the nature of dietary patterns, showing that GHG reductions can be achieved in diets if certain foods are consumed rather than other, more GHG intensive products. For instance, vegetarian and low-meat diets have proved to be less carbon intensive than diets that are bas...