Electric vehicles (EVs) could play a role in future power supply, but face issues surrounding the longevity of their batteries. This study reconciles two recent contradictory results on the effects of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology on battery life-time, and shows that V2G — a process via which EVs would exchange energy with the power grid to provide ancillary services, such as supplying power during peak periods, and helping to regulate grid frequency — could actually extend the lifespan of commercial lithium-ion batteries.

In a previous blog post, Notifications from MATLAB, I showed how Amazon's Notification system (AWS SNS) can be used from MATLAB service can be used to easily send information between endpoints in a distributed system, be they applications or people.... read more >>

Khudoleĭ, K. M

A new study has highlighted the regional variation in the impacts that climate change may have on European forests. In northern and western Europe there may be positive effects on forest growth, whilst increasing drought and fires in the Mediterranean could damage forests.

Large imports of low-cost Russian wood to Finland up until 2007 increased pressure on Russian forest ecosystems, whilst reducing harvest pressure on Finnish forests and those of other European countries that consume wood-based products made in Finland, according to research. This highlights the need to take the international dimension of environmental impacts into account when designing sustainable production and consumption policies.

A recent paper suggests that the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification scheme has not reduced deforestation, as originally intended, but acts instead as a market governance tool, which may become a barrier to international trade. However, it may develop a conservation role in conjunction with market initiatives which value ecosystem services, such as carbon sequestration through the Clean Development Mechanism.

Reducing forest fire risk within a tight budget can be successfully achieved, according to researchers. The study simulated the economic and fire risk effects of five management plans and found that a combination of removing low level trees and selective positioning of woodland produced the most economic and least destructive results

National Forest Programmes (NFPs) aim to incorporate the views of a wide range of stakeholders into the management of national forests. However, an analysis of NFPs in Bulgaria and Germany found they had little impact on forest policy. Despite this, stakeholders who took part in the NFP negotiations welcomed the opportunity to contribute to the policy-making process, even though they realised they may have little impact.

A recent study has proposed changes to the way REDD+ strategies are categorised, from an implementation perspective. This will simplify the monitoring, reporting and verification of the schemes. In addition, to encourage countries to make an early start on the REDD+ programmes, the study suggests that monitoring should initially focus on forests where it is easiest to implement REDD+ actions.

An innovative reforestation technique has been used successfully to restore patches of forest in an area of Sardinia where traditional reforestation methods have previously failed. It was the first time the technique, known as the Miyawaki method, has been used to restore forests in a Mediterranean region.

A two-stage payment for ecosystem services (PES) scheme that first changes public behaviour and attitudes towards conservation before implementing payments would be more effective than a community conservation approach or a single-stage PES scheme, according to a recent study. This approach was found to be successful for a forest conservation project in Peru.

Adapting to climate change is essential to the sustainable management of forestry but it needs to be grounded in current scientific knowledge. A recent US study has brought together scientific experts and forestry managers to ascertain some general adaptation strategies for the future.

A new study has identified the factors that cause deterioration of Mediterranean pine plantations, to develop a model of that can predict the risk of forest decline to help inform forests management strategies under a changing climate. It suggests that loss of needles is the most useful predictor of decline for the species studied.

A recent study confirms that some European ash trees are more genetically-resistant to the devastating ash dieback disease. These individuals could therefore be selected for gene conservation and/or start a breeding programme to save the European ash.

Forests may need to be converted to more drought-tolerant mixtures of tree species to prevent significant die-off under climate change, predicts a new study which modelled German forests. The researchers indicate that climate change is likely to lead to significant forest damage, which could be reduced through adaptive management.

A study of two forest ecosystems in Spain has found that land-cover maps of watersheds, ecosystems hosting key interactions between vegetation, wildlife, and water, are made more accurate by the inclusion of LiDAR data — a type of remote sensing that pulses laser light at a target to measure vertical distances for use in 3D-mapping an environment. This has important implications for ecosystem monitoring, flood mitigation, and forest management, fields in which accurately characterising an environment is key.

Like any other CIO I get several mails and calls and meeting requests from vendors – small and big, old companies and startups, current partners and potential partners. I must admit, I do not entertain most of the requests.

I did not bad mouth my predecessor. However, I never attempted to defend him or any of his actions. I fixed them!

A CIO talks about the need to make judicious technology spends in the good times.

Moore, Amelia, 1981- author

Trefil, James, 1938- author

Gaul, Gilbert M., author

Can citizen science help to drive environmental policy? What is its added value? Our short interview with Tom Wakeford (Reader in Public Science and Citizen Engagement at Coventry University, UK) examines some of the issues and a possible future for citizen science in environmental policy in Europe.

A new study has clarified the concept of the popular phrase 'energy security'. It suggests that measurements of energy security for a country or area should be multi-dimensional and include figures that represent fuel prices, the diversity of the energy market and political stability.

Subsidies support economic sectors and grant advantages to consumers, but can harm the environment. A new study has tested a number of existing tools for assessing environmentally harmful subsidies (EHS), developed a comprehensive methodology for identifying and analysing EHS and highlighted opportunities for reforming them.

A new study has examined how recent policy developments, such as the EU Habitats and Water Framework Directives, have resulted in wider and more integrated management of river estuaries, using the Severn Estuary in the UK as a case study.

Environmental policies must provide the right incentives for the development of innovative technologies that reduce pollution and mitigate the effects of climate change. A recent study has investigated the characteristics of policies that are likely to encourage green innovation and concluded that those that are stringent, predictable and flexible are the most effective.

Research has investigated whether the strictness of environmental legislation in different countries influences where industries choose to be located in Europe. Some evidence of the 'pollution haven' effect was found, but other factors determining industry location were often more influential.

Environmental regulation that is developed voluntarily within a company, for example through eco-management schemes, is more likely to lead to a competitive advantage than compulsory regulation, according to new research. The study of 208 Spanish companies suggests that command-and-control legislation tends to be perceived as a threat.

Researchers have developed a method to assess the sustainability of regeneration projects that could potentially be administered by a computer. The method tailors the universal goals of sustainability to specific local conditions.

New research from Vietnam has provided insight into factors that may influence the likelihood of local people supporting schemes that reward them for protecting services provided by the environment. It suggested that local scoping studies and open dialogue with participants are essential for these schemes to be successful.

A recent study has explored the role that renewable energy schemes can play in promoting sustainable development at the local level. It suggests that more must be done to encourage local investment and involvement in renewable energy projects if global sustainability objectives are to be met.

Sustainable de-growth is the transition to a smaller economy with less production and consumption. A new study has explored its origins and compared it to sustainable development. The study found that to become a viable alternative to sustainable development, ‘de-growth’ needs to be more clearly defined, and its implications for employment need to be considered very carefully.

New research on sustainable forest management (SFM) initiatives in Russia and Sweden has indicated that the main challenges to SFM are combining top-down and bottom up approaches to management, coordinating the different sectors involved and including all actors and stakeholders.

Firms that voluntarily adopt environmental policies appear to develop more innovative and proactive measures than firms where policies are imposed, according to new research. A study of 1151 Spanish firms indicated that those that self-regulate, especially in co-operation with other firms, seem to perform better environmentally.

Ambiguity arises in a decision-making process when there is more than one way of interpreting a problematic situation. A new study has explored five possible strategies to overcome ambiguity in natural resources management – rational problem solving, persuasive communication, learning through dialogue, negotiation and opposition. A case study of water management in Spain is given to illustrate how these strategies have been used.

For a new green economy to be successful, governments should support the development of green skills in the labour market, according to a new report. This could be achieved by improving or adding to the existing core skills of workers, whilst mainstreaming environmental awareness into education and training.

The exact impact of environmental law on investment by EU industry is relatively unknown. A new study has explored the effects of regulation on four types of industry investment and the results indicate that, in general, regulation tends to encourage more investment, but if restrictions are too tight investment levels can start to fall.

The contribution of technical innovation to sustainable development requires integrated, long-term policy to unlock industry from previous business models and practices, according to a new analysis. The researchers suggest adopting a multi-purpose policy practice that integrates industrial policy, environmental policy and trade initiatives.

Adopting the Green Economy approach will reap greater environmental, social and economic benefits, compared with a society that focuses on economic growth as the measure for future development, according to a recent UN report. Using two per cent of global GDP to ‘green’ key sectors could be enough to trigger the transition towards a green economy.

Rural areas are changing, with tourism playing an ever greater part in a multifunctional countryside. A recent study has looked at the role that sustainable rural tourism can play in rural development in Europe and some of the challenges to be overcome if a truly integrated approach to rural development is to be realised.

A new tool has been developed to predict the effectiveness of a policy on the basis of its compatibility with the institutional context in place. It is the first of its kind and a recent study has evaluated its ability to identify factors that might affect the successful implementation of policies.

International agricultural development must broaden its scope to address food security issues, according to a new study. The research recommends removing boundaries between sectors to allow agricultural policy to account for impacts of macroeconomic trends, climate change and links between malnutrition and infectious disease.

Converting algae into bioenergy is one option being considered to meet future demand for transport energy. However, a recent study suggests that some combinations of cultivation processes and conversion technologies for algae-derived energy consume more energy than is produced, although water use and greenhouse gas emissions are lower for the most promising options compared with bioenergy sourced from switchgrass and canola.

A new report commissioned by UNESCO has reviewed several case studies of national progress in learning and education for sustainable development (ESD). There are a wide range of approaches but, at the heart of all initiatives, are multi-stakeholder and collaborative partnerships which aim to instigate social change towards a more sustainable future.

New research has collated case studies of sustainable development in Poland. These indicate that there are a range of sustainability drivers and barriers, some of which are specific to transition economies in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It is hoped that the collection will trigger the development of a CEE database of good sustainability practices.

A new study has revealed the diversity in terminology and choice of indicators across eight major frameworks used to assess the environmental impacts of agriculture. The researchers call for further work to quantify and express uncertainty surrounding chosen reference values.