Sustainable Bioeconomy Vital for Freshwater Resources

Farming/Growing, Feedstock, Infrastructure, Norway, Opinions, Policy, R & D Focus, Sustainability, University/College Programs, water

October 23, 2020

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(Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research/Phys.Org) In the future, the world may increasingly rely on renewable biomass resources for the provision of food, fodder, fiber and fuel. How this transition to a bioeconomy will affect Nordic water resources, is something BIOWATER, a Nordic Centre of Excellence, is currently looking into.

In a recent special issue of the human environment journal Ambio, BIOWATER’s researchers have explored how the answer may be found in plausible scenarios, long-term datasets, and modeling . They have also studied how societies will be affected by these changes and investigated various environmental mitigation options.

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The main messages from BIOWATER, in addition to the risk of bioeconomy negatively affecting freshwater resources, is that unsustainable land use in combination with climate change will have severe impacts on the ecosystems. This can subsequently affect human welfare.

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“Targeted mitigation measures, i.e. location of measures and dimension, can assist in reducing negative side effects of a growing bioeconomy, while at the same time reducing unnecessary occupation of fertile land useful for the production of food, fodder, fiber and fuel.” READ MORE

Eva Skarbøvik et al. Catchment effects of a future Nordic bioeconomy: From land use to water resources, Ambio (2020). DOI: 10.1007/s13280-020-01391-z

Eva Skarbøvik et al. Comparing nutrient reference concentrations in Nordic countries with focus on lowland rivers, Ambio (2020). DOI: 10.1007/s13280-020-01370-4

Mette Vodder Carstensen et al. Efficiency of mitigation measures targeting nutrient losses from agricultural drainage systems: A review, Ambio (2020). DOI: 10.1007/s13280-020-01345-5

New climate model helps researchers better predict water needs (Florida State University/Phys.Org)

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