The housing sector uses 40 % of the energy in Sweden and half of the electricity usage. Theuse of energy is the main reason to the increasing rate of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.This is the main motive but also a wish of higher safety, that is a higher rate of selfsufficientenergy production in Sweden, we want to decrease the need of using fossil fuel. Now whenthe energy price rise, the interest in energy issues increase and more people discuss thepossibility of reducing the usage of fossil fuel. A change to renewable energy such as sun,wind and water is the only solution where we can get a sustainable development.One way to contribute to a better use of energy is to build in the principle of passive house.The house is being built with a thick and tight insulation. If you use a heat-exchanger withhigh degree of efficiency and a final heating battery on the ventilation system, the heat fromlamps, devices and the ones living in the house should be enough to fulfil the criteria ofliving.

Combustion of Fossil fuels is today the dominating source of energy. During combustion,carbon dioxide is formed. The carbon dioxide accumulates in the atmosphere,which raises the global average temperature on earth through the so called greenhouseeffect. The only way to reduce the emissions of carbon dioxide from combustionin a coal fired power plant is through carbon capture and storage (CCS).Post-combustion capture is a technology to separate carbon dioxide from the uegas after the combustion for efficient transport and storage. The steady state operationof coal fired power plants with post combustion capture has already beenthoroughly investigated on a pilot scale, however much work remains to investigatethe plants dynamic operation.

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.

Aquaponics is a food production system consisting of a consecutive cultivation of plants and aquatic animals, fish or shellfish, in recirculating water. The plants feed on the nutritious effluents from the fish tank and bacteria converts ammonia from the fish tank into nitrate that is absorbed by the plants. The plants receive nutrition and the fish gain purified water. The environmental impact of the production of fish meal and fish oil used in conventional fish feed includes a large consumption of Fossil fuels with subsequent carbon dioxide emission. The aquaponic system can be made environmentally sustainable and self-supporting if supplemented with a vermicompost/vermiculture for the production of worm protein as a fish feed. Vegetable waste from the hydroponic part of the system can be reused as worm feed in the compost and the protein rich worms can be harvested, dried and grinded and brought back to the aquaculture as fish feed. As a first step in this direction, I have investigated the effect of recycling of vegetable waste in vermicomposts on the growth and number of earthworms (this was evaluated after harvesting). The hypotheses were that earthworms can be cultivated in the vegetable waste and that by adding manure to the vermicompost it is possible to obtain a nutrient content adequate to support a continuous worm harvest, in other words create a vermiculture. Eisenia fetida and Dendrobaena veneta were grown in 20 L bins containing peat mixed with either poultry or cattle manure. The proportions were 70% peat and 30 % manure. Discarded plant parts from lettuce cultivation was added to the vermicomposts (35 g per week) and water was supplied with 0.8 L per week.

Sammanfattning/Abstract Världens energisystem är huvudsakligen baserade på fossila bränslen. Förbränning av fossila bränslen medför olika konsekvenser för miljön såsom ökad växthuseffekt och försurning. Kostnaderna för dessa miljökonsekvenser är vanligen externa och därmed sällan inkluderade i priserna på marknaden. Mot denna bakgrund är det samhällsekonomiskt intressant att analysera hur resursanvändning och energi-produktion påverkas ifall dessa kostnader internaliserades i priserna på världens energi- och råvarumarknader. Som teoretisk bakgrund för analysen presenteras en ekonomisk teori för optimal resursanvändning.

In the year 1800, about 5 % of the world population lived in cities (World Wide Fund for Nature, 2012, 3). Today that number is about 70 % in Europe and North America, and in 2050 it is expected to be 86 % in the developed world and 67 % in the developing world (www, UN, 2009). In addition, the global population is expected to increase with 2.2 billion people until 2050. As a result of the population increase more food has to be produced which requires more transport from the countryside to the cities. However, this flow of resources faces some difficulties.

This diploma work was performed at the department for radiation physics at the Health University in Linköping. Its aim was to develop a method to retrospectively quantify the absorbed dose in coral. Coral is a material which suites well as a retrospective dosimeter because when exposed to radioactivity its induced free radicals are stable in time. The number of radicals is proportional to the accumulated dose so the dose can be calculated by quantifying the radicals. Therefore, coral can tell us something about the past environment and also be used in dating purposes.A young, modern coral from the Red Sea was studied and also a fossil one which I was given from the Natural History Museum in Stockholm.

The goal of this master thesis project was to develop computer models of some plausiblepretreatment techniques and to assess the potential benefits/costs of using pretreatment andanaerobic digestion for waste management of organic waste from a system perspective. Forthis purpose a computer program called ORWARE has been used. ORWARE (organic wasteresearch) is a program for making life cycle assessments of waste management. As the mainpart of the project work the ORWARE system has been provided with three new models ofpretreatment techniques. The additions consist of: One model of pretreatment with ultrasound,one model of thermal hydrolysis and one model of a screw press.

A good power quality can be an important prerequisite to achieve a sustainable society. Scandinavia's electrical system is in many respects superior, and Sweden has a fossil free electricity generation at 97 % and a reliability of electricity distribution at 99.98 %. Meanwhile, the EU has an ambition to expand the electricity market in order to achieve a joint trading business across Europe. This cross-border market will result in a large proportion of fossil energy sources integrated into our electrical system, which also leads to an increased need for renewable electricity production in Sweden. One part of this development is to increase the share of renewable micro generation that is locally or regionally connected to the power grid.

This study has analyzed particel size distribution and needle content in chipped logging residuals (branches and tops) delivered to the district heating plant Ryaverket in city of Borås, Sweden. Two fuel assortments has been analyzed: Chipped logging residuals from pure softwood and from mixed fuel (connifers and broadleaves). The samples has been sieved at Linneaus University laboratory.The study of particle sizes indicates that only 53,2 % of delivered fuel is within the fuels specification (7? 45 mm). The needle content is in this study 12,4 % (dry mass) which is higher than expected..

Climate changes today are mainly caused by anthropogenic activities and the increased emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere and this has raised questions on how to reduce the usage of Fossil fuels. Ethanol is a good alternative to conventional gas and has been used in Brazil since the 1970 ?s. In Sweden several newspapers has written about the poor working conditions on many farms thus making the Swedish company SEKAB design a certification for their ethanol to ensure that it can be considered to be a sustainable alternative.Furthermore WWF has developed a certification tool called Bonsucro in cooperation with Coca Cola, Ferrero group, BP and Shell. This is due to the fact that no global certification tool has been available up until now.

Issue of study: The development of technology and society is closely linked. Mutual dependency and complex interrelationships make straightforward analysis of issues regarding the future of technology and society hard to perform. Therefore, the study addresses the question of how organizations should describe and analyze the interactions of technology and society in order to gain a better understanding of what the future may bring. Purpose: ? To develop a method for analysis of the future course of issues regarding technology and society in interaction.? To apply and test the developed method through a case study, where it is used to analyze the future of the Russian fuel market.

A couple of hundred years ago half of the earth?s surface was covered by forest. Today, only half remains and every year an area the size of Nepal is disappearing. Deforestation, together with the burning of Fossil fuels, is also one of the reasons for the increasing greenhouse effect. Another relatively unknown problem for the world?s forests is the trade with illegally harvested timber.

Syftet med denna rapport är att studera möjligheter och utmaningar för framtida biodieselproduktion på Island. Island ska enligt EU direktiv 2009/28/EG om förnybara energikällor uppfylla målet att 10 % av den totala energin i transportsektorn ska komma från förnybara energikällor år 2020. Idag ligger andelen förnybara drivmedel i transportsektorn på 0.35 %. Island har lagt fram ett policydokument om att 10 % -målet även gäller för fiskindustrin, som står för en stor del av den totala oljeanvändningen på Island. Metoden i projektet har huvudsakligen varit litteraturstudier samt några intervjuer. Projektet visar att det finns goda möjligheter att öka biodieselproduktionen på Island och även nå 10 % -målet under förutsättning att tillgången på lämpliga råvaror ökar. Enligt grova beräkningar i denna rapport kan inhemsk biodieselproduktion uppgå till 3,2 % av den totala oljeimporten år 2030.

Syftet med undersökningen var att undersöka markanvändning och skogshistoria i ett område imellanskåne på gränsen mellan skog och slätt. Frågor som behandlas rör den medeltidaagrarexpansionen och den senmedeltida agrarkrisen, samt förändringar i trädslagsammansättningen.För att besvara frågorna har vi använt paleoekologisk metodik, fr. a. pollenanalys och C14-datering,men också flygbilder, historiska kartor och skriftligt källmaterial. Våra resultat visar på enodlingskontinuitet i området från tidigmedeltid till 1600-tal med en tydlig expansion av åker ochgräsmarker under tidig medeltid och en lika tydlig regression under senmedeltid.Trädslagssammansättningen har under lång tid dominerats av ek, bok och tall.