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Sustainability assessment of bio-ethanol production in Brazil considering land use change, GHG emissions and socio-economic aspects

Author

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  • Walter, Arnaldo
  • Dolzan, Paulo
  • Quilodrán, Oscar
  • de Oliveira, Janaína G.
  • da Silva, Cinthia
  • Piacente, Fabrício
  • Segerstedt, Anna

Abstract

Three sustainability aspects of bioethanol production in Brazil were considered in this paper. Results show that the recent expansion of sugarcane has mostly occurred at the expense of pasturelands and other temporary crops, and that the hypothesis of induced deforestation is not confirmed. Avoided greenhouse gas emissions due to the use of anhydrous ethanol blended with gasoline in Brazil (E25) were estimated as 78%, while this figure would be 70% in case of its use in Europe (E10). Conversely, considering the direct impacts of land use change, the avoided emissions (e.g., ethanol consumed in Europe) would vary from â2.2% (i.e., emissions slightly higher than gasoline) to 164.8% (a remarkable carbon capture effect) depending on the management practices employed previous to land use change and also along sugarcane cropping. In addition, it was shown that where the bulk of sugarcane production takes place, in state of São Paulo, positive socio-economic aspects are observed. The general conclusion is that a significant share of ethanol production in Brazil can be considered sustainable, in particular regarding the three aspects assessed. However, as production conditions are extremely heterogeneous, a generalization of results is not possible.

Suggested Citation

  • Walter, Arnaldo & Dolzan, Paulo & Quilodrán, Oscar & de Oliveira, Janaína G. & da Silva, Cinthia & Piacente, Fabrício & Segerstedt, Anna, 2011. "Sustainability assessment of bio-ethanol production in Brazil considering land use change, GHG emissions and socio-economic aspects," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 5703-5716, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:39:y:2011:i:10:p:5703-5716
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Goldemberg, José & Coelho, Suani Teixeira & Guardabassi, Patricia, 2008. "The sustainability of ethanol production from sugarcane," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(6), pages 2086-2097, June.
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    Sustainability Biofuels Ethanol;

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