Search Results (26)

Smallholder dairy farms are central to rural livelihoods in Latin America, yet feeding strategies can shift environmental burdens across climate, land, and water dimensions. This study integrated cluster analysis and life cycle assessment to identify methane-related feeding typologies and assess their environmental trade-offs in smallholder dairy farms in the Mexican highlands. Twenty-nine farms from two dairy regions were classified by k-means clustering into two methane-emission-related farm typologies, which were subsequently characterized by their observed feeding profiles: conserved-forage-dominant (Cluster 1, n = 17) and green-forage-dominant (Cluster 2, n = 12). Their environmental performance was assessed with a cradle-to-farm gate life cycle assessment following ISO 14040/14044 and ReCiPe 2016 Midpoint across 18 impact categories. Feed production and ration supply were the main hotspots, contributing 72 to 100% of the total impacts. Global warming potential averaged 2.29 and 2.47 kg CO₂-eq per kg of raw milk in Clusters 1 and 2, respectively. Within the study sample, exploratory comparisons indicated higher marine eutrophication and land use in Cluster 1, whereas Cluster 2 showed higher fine particulate matter formation, terrestrial acidification, terrestrial ecotoxicity, and human carcinogenic toxicity (nominal p < 0.05). These potential trade-offs require validation in larger cohorts and with more geographically representative inventories. These findings show that similar milk outputs can arise from distinct feeding pathways with different environmental trade-offs and that greater reliance on fresh forage does not necessarily imply a more favorable environmental profile. Cluster-based characterization offers a practical basis for improving feed sourcing and ration design in dairy systems facing resource constraints. Full article

This study presents a gate-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) of an industrial sweet cherry sorting and packing facility in Greece, directly addressing environmental sustainability in agri-food supply chains through data-driven impact quantification and improvement pathways in post-harvest operations. The assessment focuses on a gate-to-gate system boundary encompassing all processes inside the cherry sorting and packing facility, while upstream cherry production and downstream waste management are modeled and reported separately to provide system-level context. Core-stage hotspots are then analyzed in detail in the Results section, highlighting the dominant role of electricity use compared with packaging materials. The functional unit is defined as 1 kg of packed, market-ready cherries at the factory gate. Primary data are obtained from high-resolution, batch-level measurements of mass flows, energy use, water consumption, packaging materials and waste streams over a full processing season, structured as virtual sensor outputs. These sensor-informed operational data are combined with secondary life cycle inventory information from established databases to quantify climate change impacts and identify environmental hotspots across materials, energy, water, and waste, thereby delivering a quantified picture of environmental performance in the post-harvest stage. The results show that corrugated cardboard and associated packaging components are among the main contributors within the facility-level, gate-to-gate system, while the Core stage accounts for 28.43% of total GWP100. Upstream cherry production dominates the overall Upstream–Core–Downstream climate footprint with 70.61% of total impacts. Moreover, practical mitigation scenarios are modeled, including packaging optimization, partial substitution of grid electricity with photovoltaic generation, and increased water recirculation. Ιn the combined mitigation scenario, where packaging optimization, low-carbon electricity and improved water management are implemented simultaneously, total GWP100 decreases from 114,207.32 to 92,500.27 kg CO₂-eq (−19.0%) relative to the baseline, providing actionable sustainability improvements for industry stakeholders and supporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to climate action and resource efficiency. In addition, the proposed virtual sensor architecture and data workflow support continuous monitoring, eco-efficiency management and near-real-time LCA implementation in post-harvest agri-food systems, enabling operational sustainability. Full article

Glacial-lake outburst floods (GLOFs) threaten more than three million residents of south-east Kazakhstan, yet quantitative data on lake growth and storage are scarce. We inventoried 154 lakes on the northern flank of the Ile-Alatau and selected four moraine-dammed basins with the greatest historical flood activity for detailed study. Annual lake outlines (2016–2023) were extracted from 3 m PlanetScope imagery with a Normalised Difference Water Index workflow, while late-ablation echo-sounder surveys (2023–2024) yielded sub-metre bathymetric grids. A regionally calibrated area–volume power law translated each shoreline to water storage, and field volumes served as an independent accuracy check. The lakes display divergent trajectories. Rapid thermokarst development led to a 37% increase in the surface area of Lake 13bis, expanding from 0.039 km² to 0.054 km² over a 5-year period. In contrast, engineering-induced drawdown resulted in a 44% reduction in the area of Lake 6, from 0.019 km² to 0.011 km². Lakes 5 and 2, which are supplied by actively retreating glaciers, exhibited surface area increases of 4.8% and 15%, expanding from 0.077 km² to 0.088 km² and from 0.061 km² to 0.070 km², respectively. The empirical model reproduces field volumes to within ±25% for four lakes, confirming its utility for rapid hazard screening, but overestimates storage in low-relief basins and underestimates artificially drained lakes. This is the first study in Ile-Alatau to fuse daily 3 m multispectral imagery with ground-truth bathymetry, delivering an 8-year, volume-resolved record of lake evolution. The results identify Lake 5 and Lake 2 as priority targets for early-warning systems and demonstrate that sustained intervention can effectively suppress GLOF risk. Incorporating these storage trajectories into regional disaster plans will sharpen evacuation mapping, optimise resource allocation, and inform transboundary water-hazard policy under accelerating climate change. Full article

There is a growing need to implement modern technologies, such as digital twinning, to improve the efficiency of transport fleet maintenance processes and maintain company operational capacity at the required level. A comprehensive review of the existing literature is conducted to address this, offering an up-to-date analysis of relevant content in this field. The methodology employed is a systematic literature review using the Primo multi-search tool, adhering to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The selection criteria focused on English studies published between 2012 and 2024, resulting in 201 highly relevant papers. These papers were categorized into seven groups: (a) air transportation, (b) railway transportation, (c) land transportation (road), (d) in-house logistics, (e) water and intermodal transportation, (f) supply chain operation, and (g) other applications. A notable strength of this study is its use of diverse scientific databases facilitated by the multi-search tool. Additionally, a bibliometric analysis was performed, revealing the evolution of DT applications over the past decade and identifying key areas such as predictive maintenance, condition monitoring, and decision-making processes. This study highlights the varied levels of adoption across different transport sectors and underscores promising areas for future development, particularly in underrepresented domains like supply chains and water transport. Additionally, this paper identifies significant research gaps, including integration challenges, real-time data processing, and standardization needs. Future research directions are proposed, focusing on enhancing predictive diagnostics, automating maintenance processes, and optimizing inventory management. This study also outlines a framework for DT in transportation systems, detailing key components and functionalities essential for effective maintenance management. The findings provide a roadmap for future innovations and improvements in DT applications within the transportation industry. This study ends with conclusions and future research directions. Full article

The need to find a trade-off between protecting water-related ecosystems and increasing safe water-use for human society is recognized in the 2030 Agenda of the European Union. We assess the ecological status of a riverine system in order to mitigate human impacts, considering its importance for supplying drinking water to more than 4 million users in Rome. We used an integrated approach, analyzing animal and plant communities at riverbanks and the riverbed. A macrobenthos analysis revealed a well-structured community with a good ecology for all sampling stations. The highest value was found immediately upstream and downstream of the springs collection system, while the lowest richness value was where the river collects urban wastewater. A floristic inventory showed Hemicryptophytes composing almost 45% of all species, and prevalence of Euroasiatic (35%) and Orophilous (34%) chorotypes. A positive correlation between riverbed vegetation and the quality of the benthic community was revealed, while tree height seems to have a negative trend. Our data suggest a river stretch affected by resurgence and water abstraction did not highlight irreversible alterations to the landscape. Indeed, the composition of vegetation and correlated animal communities mirrored a clinal gradient expected for an Apennine river system. Our study has the potential to improve the approach used to monitor the impacts of humans on freshwater ecosystems, aiming at preserving the integrity of the water-related landscape. Full article

Groundwater is critical to the socioeconomic development of any region. Infiltration of surface water into the ground is influenced by a variety of factors such as soil pores, folds, fractures, faults, and joints, all of which contribute to groundwater recharge. Groundwater is an important source of freshwater in the drought-prone Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu, India. Therefore, the search for groundwater potential zones (GWPZs) is critical. The present study focuses on the investigation of potential groundwater zones using geospatial techniques. Geology, land use and land cover, geomorphology, soil, drainage density, lineament, and groundwater levels were obtained from state and non-state associations. ArcGIS version 10.8 was used to create all thematic layers and classified grids. The intensive use of groundwater in arid and semiarid regions is becoming a problem for the public to meet their freshwater needs. The condition of arid and semi-arid regions due to intensive groundwater extraction has become one of the most important environmental problems for the public. In this study, a powerful groundwater potential mapping technique was developed using integrated remote sensing data from GIS-AHP. Using AHP techniques, thematic layers for geology, geomorphology, and soil followed by drainage, drainage density and lineament, lineament density, slope, water level, and lithological parameters were created, classified, weighted, and integrated into a GIS environment. According to the results of the study, it is estimated that 14% of the groundwater potential in the study area is good, 49% is moderate and 36% is poor. A groundwater level map was used to verify the groundwater potential. In addition, the model was validated with a single-layer sensitivity analysis, which showed that geology was the most influential layer and water level was the least influential thematic layer. The low-potential areas identified on the groundwater potential map can be used for further study to identify ideal locations for artificial recharge. In low potential areas, the groundwater potential map can be used to find ideal locations for artificial recharge. The water table in the area must be raised by artificial recharge structures such as infiltration basins, recharge pits, and agricultural ponds. Artificial recharge structures such as infiltration basins, recharge pits, and agricultural ponds can be used for groundwater development in the low potential zones. The GWPZ map was successfully validated with three proxy data, such as the number of wells, groundwater level, and well density, obtained from well inventory information. The results of this study will improve our understanding of the geographic analysis of groundwater potential and help policy makers in this drought-prone area to create more sustainable water supply systems. Full article

The impacts of shock events frequently cascade beyond the primarily affected sector(s), through the interdependent economic system, and result in higher-order indirect losses in other sectors. This study employed the inoperability input–output model (IIM) and the dynamic IIM (DIIM) to model recovery of sectors after a shock event and quantify associated total losses. Considering data limitations and uncertainties regarding sectoral recovery time, a key variable in DIIM, a probabilistic approach is used for modelling uncertainty in recovery times. The event analyzed is the 2011 oil refinery fire accident in Pulau Bukom (PB) island, Singapore, which caused the refinery to shut down for 11 days and be partially operational for several days thereafter. The impacts are assessed using the regrouped 15-sector Singapore IO data of year 2010, with manufacturing sector as the directly affected sector. The initial economic impact of the PB refinery fire is assessed in the top-down framework using the refinery’s contribution to the manufacturing sector and nation’s GDP. The higher-order losses are quantified considering different recovery paths for the directly affected sector and accounting for its inventory. Simulation experiments using synthetic IO tables are also carried out to understand relationship between recovery characteristics of directly and indirectly affected sectors. The results from IIM analysis show that the indirect losses are about 35–38% of direct losses. The DIIM analysis reveal that the utilities sectors (e.g., electricity, water supply and treatment) suffer the largest inoperability among indirectly affected sectors for a given direct damage to the manufacturing sector. The results also illustrate the dependence of overall losses on the recovery path of the directly affected sector, and associated uncertainties in sectoral recovery times. Full article

There is widespread recognition that a transformation of food systems is needed to improve environmental sustainability. As part of efforts to hold food companies accountable for their role in improving the environmental sustainability of food systems, there is a critical role for monitoring and benchmarking of company actions. This study aimed to develop a proposed set of metrics for assessing the commitments and practices of food companies regarding environmental sustainability. Guided by an inventory of existing sustainability reporting frameworks and benchmarking initiatives, we proposed 37 indicators for assessment, categorised into ten domains, covering strategy, packaging, greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, water, biodiversity, food waste, compliance and reducing animal-sourced foods. We refined the indicators after consultation with academic experts. We discussed implementation feasibility with sustainability managers from three major food companies in New Zealand. Feedback highlighted the need to pilot test methods for applying the indicators in practice, including assessment of a company’s impact across the supply chain, refining indicator scoring criteria, and weighting indicators based on company- and sector-specific priority areas of focus. Assessment of food companies using the proposed set of metrics can improve accountability for action and inform government regulatory responses. Full article

The historic water supply to large cities constitutes a constructed heritage characterised by comprising a range of public structures—dams, canals, tanks, siphons and aqueducts—over a large geographical area. Within this international context, this paper looks at the case of Canal de Isabel II (CYII) and its historic infrastructure, built in the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. The purpose of this study is to analyse how these water supply public works, which maintain their original use, have also taken on new functions through the conversion of some of their parts and added new values to the existing ones. In order to do this, an inventory was drawn up with the location and cultural value of each structure based on its historic, technological, landscape and symbolic features, as well as its use. The results establish the significance of the overall system, not only in functional terms but also as a cultural resource. It is essential to understand the historic water supply infrastructure as a whole, not just as individual components but rather as pieces of a network. This is also essential for the management and preservation of the system, both where the structures are still in use as part of the water supply and where they have been converted for other uses. Full article

Copper is an important strategic resource for the national economy and social security of China. Water use is a significant component of copper production. However, water shortages and water pollution are two global crises in water resource management. In this study, a copper production industry in China was studied from the perspective of water footprint (WF) and ecological industry (eco-industry). A WF inventory was built by accounting for the entire production and supply chain process, including mining, ore dressing, transportation, smelting, and electrolysis. An index system comprising target, criterion, and variable layers was established to evaluate the sustainable utilization of water resources. It was observed that the studied industry showed a good sustainability for water resource utilization. Only 65.67 tons of freshwater per ton of product was inputted in the entire process due to virtual water (VW) and the use of reclaimed water. However, the WF of each ton of cathode copper product was 162.58 t, and the imported VW of the eco-industry accounted for 92.45%. Increasing the VW import and reducing the VW export can alleviate water shortages. A detailed WF analysis showed that the effects of evaporation and different types of losses on the blue WF (BWF) were significant and should be considered. Upstream water consumption of electricity and other energy sources were also observed to be an important part of the BWF. Regardless of whether freshwater or recycled water was used, the WF can be reduced only by effectively reducing water consumption. Full article

Unsustainable food systems are responsible for unhealthy diets and significant environmental degradation globally. The environmental impact of food companies extends along the food supply chain. The International Network for Food and Obesity/Non-communicable Diseases Research, Monitoring and Action Support (INFORMAS) is a global research network that aims to monitor, benchmark and support public and private sector actions to reduce obesity and non-communicable diseases. The Business Impact Assessment on Obesity and Population Nutrition (BIA-Obesity) tool for monitoring the nutrition commitments of food manufacturers, retailers and quick-service restaurants has been successfully used in various countries. This research aims to develop a companion tool to monitor the commitments of food companies to sustainability and verify the relevance and feasibility of the proposed indicators with experts. An inventory of existing indicators was created to guide the creation of domains and indicators. The eleven proposed domains were: packaging, energy use, emissions, water and discharge, biodiversity, climate change adaptation, food loss and waste, environmental compliance, relationships with other organisations, corporate sustainability strategy and reducing ruminant-based products. The Global Reporting Initiative is the most widely used sustainability reporting framework, so selected indicators were modified, and additional indicators and a scoring system were added. Feedback was provided from six academic experts in New Zealand and Australia, sustainability managers from three major food companies in New Zealand and from the INFORMAS Food Sustainability Advisory team (international sustainability experts). In each feedback step, the indicators were modified to improve the specificity of commitments, clarify definitions, add or remove indicators and to modify the scoring of indicators. Feedback highlighted the complexity for food companies in setting commitments, how to incorporate the supply chain into the indicators, how to focus on priority areas of environmental impact for an individual company, and challenges in developing indicators for biodiversity. The resulting 35 indicators will be piloted in selected countries. Full article

The swine diet formulation in the United States of America (U.S.A.) is entering a new era of decision making to promote low-carbon pork production systems. As a part of the decision-making process, the precision nutrition approaches to customize diet and alternative feeding options that are economically viable and environmentally sustainable are given priority. Hence, the objective of this study is to identify an alternative diet over a standard corn–soybean meal diet. The byproducts from the supply chain of human food and biofuels, i.e., distiller-dried grain with solubles (DDGS), are chosen as an alternative option to formulate a swine diet. First, two alternative byproduct diets with low and high DDGS inclusion (10.1% and 28.8%, respectively) were formulated using the least-cost technique. Second, a life cycle inventory was created, followed by data collection from the key sources, including DATA SMART-2017, USDA, RIA-GREET 2018, and the relevant literature. Third, in SimaPro 8.5.2.0 (PRé Sustainability: LE Amersfoort, The Netherlands), the ReCiPe 2016, the midpoint method by economic allocation was used to investigate the environmental footprint of the formulated diets to inform sustainability decisions of swine-farm managers. The considered functional unit is the ‘lb diet’, and the system boundary is the farm gate that considers only the feed production stage. The observed results include global warming potential, land use, water consumption, fossil resources scarcity, and terrestrial ecotoxicity. The comparative results of a 28.8% DDGS diet over the standard corn–soybean meal diet for the displacement ratio of 0.69 show an approximate global warming potential saving of 0.04 kg CO₂ eq. per lb DDGS feed at the feed production stage. Moreover, the DDGS displacement ratio of 0.69 does not significantly impact water consumption and fossil resources; however, it can reduce land use by 26% and terrestrial ecotoxicity by 8% compared to the standard diet. Overall, the quantified environmental footprint results of the byproduct DDGS diets indicate that the footprints of DDGS diets were lower than the standard diet. Full article

The analysis and prevention of hydrogeological risks plays a very important role and, currently, much attention is paid to advanced numerical models that correspond more to physical reality and whose aim is to reproduce complex environmental phenomena even for long times and on large spatial scales. Within this context, the feasibility of performing an effective balance of surface water flow relating to several months was explored, based on accurate hydraulic and mathematical-numerical models applied to a system at the scale of a hydrographic basin. To pursue this target, a 2D Riemann–Godunov shallow-water approach, solved in parallel on a graphical processing unit (GPU), able to drastically reduce calculation time, and implemented into the RiverFlow2D code (2017 version), was selected. Infiltration and evapotranspiration were included but in a simplified way, in order to face the calibration and validation simulations and because, despite the parallel approach, it is very demanding even for the computer time requirement. As a test case the Pescara river basin, located in Abruzzo, Central Italy, covering an area of 813 km² and well representative of a typical medium-sized basin, was selected. The topography was described by a 10 × 10 m digital terrain model (DTM), covered by about 1,700,000 triangular elements, equipped with 11 rain gauges, distributed over the entire area, with some hydrometers and some fluviometric stations. Calibration, and validation were performed considering the flow data measured at a station located in close proximity to the mouth of the river. The comparison between the numerical and measured data, and also from a statistical point of view, was quite satisfactory. A further important outcome was the capability to highlight any differences between the numerical flow-rate balance carried out on the basis of the contributions of all known sources and the values actually measured. This characteristic of the applied modeling allows better calibration and verification not only of the effectiveness of much more simplified approaches, but also the entire network of measurement stations and could suggest the need for a more in-depth exploration of the territory in question. It would also enable the eventual identification of further hidden supplies of water inventory from underground sources and, accordingly, to enlarge the hydrographic and hydrogeological border of the basin under study. Moreover, the parallel computing platform would also allow the development of effective early warning systems, for example, of floods. Full article

The Port del Comte Massif (SE, Pyrenees) contains one of the most important vulnerable and strategic karst aquifers for supplying freshwater to the city of Barcelona (Spain). It is a fragile system, whose possible environmental impact is highly conditioned by land use. To improve the hydrogeological knowledge of the system, between September 2013 and October 2015, a detailed fieldwork was carried out for the revision of the geological model, the inventory of water points, and the in situ physico-chemical characterization on major elements and isotopes of up to a total of 43 springs, as well as precipitation water. This paper focuses on the characterization of the geochemical processes that allow explanation of the observed chemical variability of groundwater drained by the pristine aquifer system to determine the origin of salinity. The results show that the main process is the dissolution of calcite and dolomite, followed by gypsum and halite, and a minor cation exchange-like process. Sulfur and oxygen isotopes from dissolved sulfate in the studied springs point out a geogenic origin related to the dissolution of gypsum from Triassic and Tertiary materials, and that the contribution from anthropogenic sources, like fertilizers, is lower. Nitrate in groundwater is not an important issue, with a few localized cases related with agricultural activities. The multidisciplinary approach has allowed the development of a consistent hydrogeological conceptual model of the functioning of the aquifer system, which can be replicated in other places to understand the geogenic character of the hydrogeochemistry. Full article

In this research, environmental impacts associated with the intensive production of pigs on a farm in Mexico were determined through the application of life cycle assessment methodology. The research was focused on the following stages of the product system: (i) pig rearing and growth phases; (ii) production operations in the pig-house; (iii) the supply of feed. The life cycle inventory database was mainly made up of data collected in field visits to local farms. The functional unit was defined as one finished swine weighing 124 kg. The results for the selected impact categories of carbon, water, and energy footprints were 538.62 kg CO₂eq, 21.34 m³, and 1773.79 MJ, respectively. The greatest impact was generated in the final stages of pig fattening, mainly due to the large quantity of feed supplied. The impacts caused by operation of the pig farm were less significant, their contribution in all cases was less than a third of the total quantified values. The energy conversion of pig slurry improves the environmental performance of the product system by reducing the carbon footprint. Full article