An Internet application, VEDAIR, for estimation of air quality in regions with small-scale combustion of bio fuel has been developed by Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute with financing from Swedish Energy Agency and Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. The model contains user interface and a coupled model concept where concentrations of atmospheric pollutions are calculated for regional, urban and local contributions. In this report the model is described and a first study of air quality considering PM10 (particles with a diameter less than 10 µm) in two Swedish municipalities, Vänersborg and Gnosjö, is introduced.According to the result, there are areas with poor air quality even in smaller Swedish municipalities, mostly due to high emission from buildings with older wood heating furnace without hydraulic accumulator.In Vänersborg three areas were analysed in VEDAIR for the year 2003: Vargön, Mariedal and the downtown district. In the whole municipality the upper evaluation threshold for PM10, which is defined as 14 µg/m3 for annual average, was exceeded due to background contribution of particles. In all areas, however, the concentrations of PM10 were less than the environmental quality norms.

The purpose of this master thesis is to evaluate how internal vehicle information inScania buses and trucks can be used for evaluation of driver performance regardingfuel economy, vehicle wear, traffic safety, Emissions and cargo damage. To someextent it was examined whether this information could be used for training the driverto a better driving style. In addition, a prototype for such a system was developed.By first defining what distinguishes a talented driver and how he/she differs from apoor driver, followed by a study of the internal vehicle communication, a system thatin real-time gathers and interprets vehicle data could be developed.The resulting system can with reasonably high reliability detect a number of trafficevents (such as braking, lane changing or hilltops). At each such event, the driver?sbehaviour can be evaluated.

With gas prices persistently rising, electric and hybrid vehicles are getting more and more common and in recent years several new electric cars have evolved on the market. Although the energy consumption and low Emissions are a huge benefit of the electric cars, they inevitably suffer from high prices, short range and time consuming recharging periods. To be able to withstand the competition it is important that electric vehicles not only can withstand general were and tare, but also the harsh conditions that ordinary cars is exposed to in daily usage. The purpose of this project is to develop a test methodology which replicate situations that could appear in daily usage of electric or hybrid cars and to understand the problems related to usage of electric cars in winter conditions. This paper also discusses the major differences between hybrid cars and electric cars.

While the call for regulations against greenhouse gas Emissions are louder then ever before, demand for oil is also at an all time high. Oil companies face the dilemma of making sound business without being perceived as environmental villains. In this essay I will examine how BP, one of the largest companies in the world, broke rank with the industry and devoted itself to being an environmental friendly oil company. The actions and motives of this change will be evaluated through up-to-date theories about company motivation to environmental adaptation. We see that BP:s transformation can be well explained through Simone Pulvers theory about the socially embedded company.

Examensarbetet behandlar redovisning av klimatpåverkan från indirekta utsläppskällor hos Teracom AB. Fokus ligger på transporter, som innefattar godstransporter, tjänsteresor och personalens pendling till och från jobbet. Metoden som utvecklats är till för att samla in och behandla data som sedan presenteras i ton koldioxidekvivalenter. Varje del av de ingående områdena har beräknats var för sig med hjälp av i mestadels schabloner. Dessa schabloner har baserats på statistik från Teracoms leverantörer för att de ska stämma överens med verksamhetsområdet och de geografiska förutsättningarna.

Humidity problems and poor ventilation are factors that we associate with poor indoor airquality which are known to negatively affect health. Such problems have decreased with timein Sweden but, in other countries this is still a major problem especially during winter. InChile, this is most common in the central regions of the country, especially the Strait ofMagellan. This issue is primarily due to surface condensation happening indoors which bringsabout dampness which facilitates the growth of fungus and stains, foul odors, metal corrosionand more. This is due to a combination of poor ventilation and insufficient forms of heatingalong with buildings which have no insulation.

The aim of my study is to answer the question whether there is a potential for services by working horses in the Swedish municipalities. The Swedish University for Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and Swedish Farmers Union (LRF) has started a cooperation called Climate School (Klimatskolan), with the purpose to increase knowledge in environmental and climate related issues in context of agriculture. This Master thesis is in the framework of the Climate School.Global warming is a problem that gets much attention today. Global warming and climate change are two subjects that are very much in focus on the political agenda. The municipalities of Sweden have a big responsibility concerning environmental work and to develop their own environmental thinking.

The smelting process at Sapa Profiler AB in Sjunnen generates large quantities of waste heat which is absorbed by the cooling water when the aluminum is cooled down. This paper is the result of a Master?s Degree Project aiming to present the conditions for recycling the waste heat. The cooling water absorbs the heat from the aluminum at an average rate of 600 kW and the paper shows that it can be used to replace electrical power consumption for heating the production plant?s facilities.

Issues regarding the environment are commonly discussed in the media. The most common problem that is discussed is how to decrease the Emissions of greenhouse gases by human beings. The municipality of Kristianstad has chosen to work with a project named ?Biogas Kristianstad? which purposes are to use all of the produced biogas as motor fuel and to speed up the introduction of biogas on the local market. This is in an effort to decrease the effects on the environment in the municipality of Kristianstad.

To establish sustainability reports is an increasing trend for more and more companies. This has led to a spread of the international framework Global reporting initiative, GRI, guidelines to make a sustainability reports. This trend has got a lot of critics from various stakeholders who believe that companies in these reports communicate the information in a way of window dressing. Both negative and positive information has to be represented according to GRI: s principle of balance.  Window dressing is created by adding a greater emphasis on the positive information. The researchers review the context of the negative information to study the extent to which it is reported and whether there are patterns and variations in the reported information.

All around the world more and more people move from rural areas to live in the cities. Because of this, the urban areas have become an important part in the debate about the effects on the environment and sustainability. In many countries word wide initiatives have been taken to build sustainable cities and eco cities, the Stockholm Royal Seaport is one example. The vision for the district is to become a world class sustainable city based on the three dimensions of sustainable development: social, economic and ecologic. The municipality of Stockholm has set requirements for the buildings? energy usage, Emissions and amount of waste generated during the building process.

Freshwater ecosystems have long been neglected as an important part of the global carbon cycle. However, research shows that most of the world?s lakes are net-heterotrophic and consequently emitters of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. In many boreal and north-temperate lakes, most of the yearly Emissions usually occur in spring, shortly after ice-thaw. The aim of this study was to quantify the flux of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) in three boreal lakes, during this annual event.

This study examines how farmers certified by KRAV face proposed regulations on organic soils put forward by KRAV economic association among others, and how they are affected economically. These soils are, from an environmental perspective, interesting as a target for production regulations as they cause greenhouse gas Emissions through decomposition of organic material when cultivated. The regulations advocate that organic soils should be grown with pasture where soil cultivation is only allowed every fith year which implies that possible adjustments of cultivation have to be made in order to fulfill the regualtions. Collection of data have been made through a questionnaire sent out to 574 farmers certified by KRAV. The answers have been analysed using a decision making model and statistical findings suggest that proportion of organic soils, type of production, economic conditions and farmers? goals and values have an influence on whether the regulations and potential cultivation adjustments have been considered or not.

Tasmania is a state in Australia, and is also the country?s largest island. It is separated from the main land by a 429 kilometer wide strait. Every year, a large amount of people, cars and goods are transported to the island using a government owned ferry line, which generates approximately 300 million Australian dollars to the state?s economy ,every year. This bachelor thesis investigates the possibility of reducing the fuel consumption for the ferry traffic to and from Tasmania, which would also reduce the overall cost.

With the expansion onto the international market almost a decade ago, Swedish energy corporation Vattenfall began it's breaking and burning of coal on German soil. Criticism aimed at Vattenfall peaked in the mid 2000s with the revelation of large quantities of carbon dioxide Emissions and the re-location of villages and graveyards in German states Brandenburg and Saxony. The purpose of this thesis is to show where the responsibility for these activities lie. By analyzing the history of, and the political debate surrounding, Vattenfall, I will show that the prevailing policies of right- as well as left-wing parties in the 20th century were all, regarding this matter, market oriented. I will also show that these market promoting policies made possible a situation where the transparancy of, and state control over, Vattenfall were close to eliminated.