Carbon Footprint of Biodiesel from El Cimarrón, Colombia Draft Report Prepared for: Prestige Colombia SAS Prepared by: Quantis Simon Gmünder, Project Manager Laura Rubio, Life Cycle Analyst Rainer Zah, Scientific Support March 14, 2017 LAUSANNE – PARIS – BERLIN – ZURICH - BOGOTA - BOSTON | www.quantis-intl.com
51
Embed
Carbon Footprint of Biodiesel from El Cimarrón, Colombiaresgrow.com/onewebmedia/Prestige_report_Quantis_20170315b.pdf · Quantis Carbon Footprint of Biodiesel from Prestige March
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Carbon Footprint of Biodiesel from ElCimarrón,ColombiaDraftReport
Preparedfor:PrestigeColombiaSASPreparedby:Quantis
SimonGmünder,ProjectManager
LauraRubio,LifeCycleAnalyst
RainerZah,ScientificSupport
March14,2017
LAUSANNE – PARIS – BERLIN – ZURICH - BOGOTA - BOSTON | www.quantis-intl.com
Quantis CarbonFootprintofBiodieselfromPrestige
March14,2017 Pageii
Quantis is a leading life cycle assessment (LCA) consulting firm specialized in supportingcompaniestomeasure,understandandmanagetheenvironmentalimpactsoftheirproducts,services and operations. Quantis is a global company with offices in the United States,Switzerland,Germany,ColombiaandFranceandemployscloseto60people,amongstwhichseveralareinternationallyrenownedexpertsintheLCAfield.
Quantis offers cutting-edge services in environmental footprinting (multiple indicatorsincluding carbon and water), eco design, sustainable supply chains and environmentalcommunication.Quantis also provides innovative LCA software,Quantis SUITE 2.0,whichenablesorganizationstoevaluate,analyzeandmanagetheirenvironmental footprintwithease. Fuelled by its close ties with the scientific community and its strategic researchcollaborations,Quantishasastrongtrackrecordinapplyingitsknowledgeandexpertisetoaccompany clients in transforming LCA results into decisions and action plans. Moreinformationcanbefoundatwww.quantis-intl.com.
This report has been prepared by the Latin American office of Quantis. Please direct allquestionsregardingthisreporttoSimonGmünderfromQuantisLatinAmerica.
Prestige Colombia SAS (hereafter Prestige) is a Colombian palm oil producer in Vichada,Colombia. Currently 625 hectares (ha) are under cultivation and the first harvest isapproaching. Theoilwill be extracted in a smallmill inVichada,which is currently underconstruction,andthecrudepalmoil isintendedtobesoldinColombia.PrestigeColombiaSAShas13000haoflandrightsandarelookingtofurtherexpandthecultivationareaundertheZIDRESlaw(upto60.000ha).
PrestigeColombiaSASisevaluatingthefeasibilityofexportingpalmoilorbiodieseltoEurope.To receive government support or count towards national renewable energy targets thebiofuelshavetocomplywiththeEUsustainabilitycriteria.Therenewableenergydirective(RED) criteria for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions states that “from 1 January 2018greenhousegasemissionsavingsshallbeatleast60%1forbiofuelsandbioliquidsproducedin installations inwhich production started on or after 1 January 2017” (EU-Commission,2008)Article17paragraph2.
AccordingtotheEU,thedefaultgreenhouseemissionsavingsofpalmoilbiodieseldonotfulfil the sustainability criteria of 60% GHG reduction compared to fossil fuels. Severalprevious studies however underlined the substantial GHG saving potential of Colombianbiodieselfrompalmoil(Castanheira&Freire,2016;CUE,2012)andthusthedefaultvaluesprovidedbytheEU,whicharemainlybasedondatafromSouth-EastAsia,donotreflecttheconditionsofbiodieselproductioninColombia.
Theproject report is intended toprovide results in a clear andusefulmanner to supportcommunicationofthecarbonfootprinttointernalandexternalaudiences(clients,providers,policymakers,shareholders,etc.).Whendisclosingtheresultsithastobeclearlystatedthat
1On30November2016, theCommissionpublishedaproposal fora revisedRenewableEnergyDirective toensurethatthe2030targetsaremet.Theproposedchangesincludese.g.thattheGHGsavingsofleast70%forbiofuelsandbioliquidsproducedininstallationsstartingoperationafter1January2021.(EU-Commission,2008)Article17paragraph2.
Quantis CarbonFootprintofBiodieselfromPrestige
March14,2017 13
thecarbon footprintstudy isprospective, since thesystem isyet tobebuild,andhas thecharacterofascreeningstudywithrelativelyhighuncertainties.
Carbon footprinting is an internationally recognized approach that evaluates the carbonimpactsassociatedwithproductsandservicesthroughouttheirlifecycle,beginningwithrawmaterialextractionandincludingallaspectsoftransportation,production,use,andend-of-lifetreatment.Amongotheruses,carbonfootprintingcanidentifyopportunitiestoimprovetheenvironmentalperformanceofproductsatvariouspointsinthelifecycle,informdecision-making,andsupportmarketing,communication,andeducationalefforts.Itisimportanttonote that, rather than direct measurements of real impacts, the impacts described areestimates of relative, potential impacts with limitations that are clearly indicated andacceptedbytheguidelines.
TheoilpalmcultivationandprocessingplantarelocatedclosetoNuevaAntioquia,Primaveramunicipality, Vichada department, Colombia. Themap below illustrates the current areaundercultivation,the13.000haandtheplannedexpansionof80.000ha(ofwhich60.000haareusedforoilpalmplantation).
Oil palm plantationswere established in 2011 and 2012 (yellow area, 625ha) and the oilextractionplantwhichiscurrentlyunderconstructionisplannedtobeoperationalinApril2017.
WithinthisstudywethecarbonfootprintoflargescalebiodieselproductioninPrimavera,NuevaAntioquia.Theanalysedsystemconsistsofanoilpalmcultivationareaof60.000haonthe total land area of 80.000ha2, 5 oil extraction mills and a state of the art biodieselproduction plant. The residues from oil extraction are used to generate electricity andcompost.ThebiodieselwillbetransportedtoEuropeintwopotentialrouts(viaVenezuelaandCartagena).
2.3.2 Functionalunit
Product carbon footprints rely on a “functional unit” as a reference for evaluating thecomponents within a single system or amongmultiple systems on a common basis. It isthereforecriticalthatthisparameterisclearlydefinedandmeasurable.Tofulfilthefunctionalunit, different quantities and types ofmaterials are required for eachproduct. These areknownasreferenceflows.Thereferenceflowforcomparingbiodieselwithfossildieselusedinthisstudyis1MJoffuelcombustedinastandardpassengercarandtheGHGemissionsfromfuelsareexpressedintermsofgramsofCO2equivalentperMJoffuel,gCO2eq/MJ.
Thesystemboundariesidentifythelifecyclestages,processes,andflowsconsideredintheLCA and should include all activities relevant for attaining the above-mentioned studyobjectives.
In this study the GHG emissions from cradle-to-grave are quantified, starting with thefeedstockproductionup to the combustionof thebiodiesel. In the following section, thegenerallifecyclestagesaredescribed,whilethedetaileddescriptionofeachstageisprovidedinchapter3.
Oilpalmcultivation:Theoilpalmcultivationstartswiththelandprovisionandincludesalldirect and indirect emissions related to cultivation, as well as the harvesting andtransportationofthefreshfruitbunches(FFB)totheoilmill.Emissionsfromthecultivationof rawmaterials (eec) shall include emissions from the cultivationprocess itself; from thecollectionofrawmaterials;fromwasteandleakages;andfromtheproductionofchemicalsorproductsusedincultivation(includesvaluechainemissions).
Oil extraction and biodiesel production: Emissions from processing (ep) shall includeemissionsfromtheprocessingitself;fromwasteandleakages;andfromtheproductionofchemicalsorproductsusedinprocessing.TheCPOisextractedfromtheFFB.Thebyproductssuchaskerneloilandmealaresold.Thepalmoilmilleffluents(POME)andtheemptyfruitbunch(EFB)arecomposted.Therawmaterialsarerefinedandtrans-esterifiedtoproducebiodieselandglycerine.
Transport to filling station: Emissions from transport and distribution (etd) shall includeemissionsfromthetransportandstorageofrawandsemi-finishedmaterialsandfromthestorageanddistributionoffinishedmaterials.
Thebiodiesel isblendedwith fossildieselproducedand transported to the fillingstationsbeforeitiscombustedinthedieselenginesofvehicles.
All product components and production processes are included when the necessaryinformationisreadilyavailableorareasonableestimatecanbemade.InaccordancewiththeEUREDmethodologythefollowingflowsareexcludedfromthisstudy:
Oilpalmplantations:Primarydatafromthe625haundercultivationwascollected.ThedatacollectionwasbasedonaquestionnairefilledoutbypersonalfromPrestige.Theprimarydatawas compared to literaturevalueanda conservative value foreach flowwas considered.Secondarydatawasusedforthebackgroundprocessesandthecarbonstockvaluesofthedifferentlanduses.
Palmoilextraction:Estimateddatafromtheoilmillwhichiscurrentlyunderconstructioniscollected based on a questionnaire filled out by personnel from Prestige. The data wascomparedtoliteraturevalueandaconservativevalueforeachflowwasconsidered.
Biodiesel transport and distribution:We analysed four different transportation routes,considering the specific transportation distances and transportation means. The energyconsumptionfromthefueldepotandfillingstationarebasedonEUREDdefaultvalues.
Biodieseluse:TheEUREDdefaultvalues(zero)areused.
Fossildiesel:TheEUREDdefaultvaluesareused.
Backgrounddataarenotspecificallyrelatedtotheproductsystemandareusuallyderivedfrom generic inventory databases. Typical examples are transport datasets and datasetsrelatedtomaterialproductionandelectricitygeneration.Suchbackgrounddata isderivedfrom literature and from the Ecoinvent v 3.2 database3. Ecoinvent is internationallyrecognizedbymanyexpertsinthefieldasoneofthemostcompleteLCIdatabasesavailable,fromaquantitative(numberofincludedprocesses)andaqualitative(qualityofthevalidationprocesses,datacompleteness,etc.)perspective.
The data sources and assumptions are documented in the respective chapters. InventorymodellingandcarbonfootprintcalculationsareperformedinSimapro7.35.
2.4.2 Allocationmethod
WeapplytheenergyallocationasdefinedintheEURED:“Whereafuelproductionprocessproduces,incombination,thefuelforwhichemissionsarebeingcalculatedandoneormoreotherproducts(co-products),greenhousegasemissionsshallbedividedbetweenthefuelorits intermediate product and the co-products in proportion to their energy content(determinedbylowerheatingvalueinthecaseofco-productsotherthanelectricity).
Wastes,agriculturalcropresidues,includingstraw,bagasse,husks,cobsandnutshells,andresidues fromprocessing, includingcrudeglycerine (glycerine that isnot refined), shallbeconsideredtohavezerolife-cyclegreenhousegasemissionsuptotheprocessofcollectionofthosematerials.”EURED,AnnexV,chapterC.17.
This assumption is based on the concept of “carbon neutrality”, where the atmosphericcarbonfixationandend-of-lifecarbonemissionsoccurinsuchashortperiodoftimethattheycanberegardedasoffsettingeachother.
2.4.4 Landusechange
The carbon emissions fromdirect land use change are calculated according to the Tier 1approachproposedbyIntergovernmentalPanelonClimateChange(IPCC,2006).Thecarbonchangeiscalculatedasthedifferenceofthecarboninabovegroundbiomass(AGB),belowgroundbiomass(BGB),deadorganicmatter(DOM)andsoilorganiccarbon(SOC)beforeandafteroilpalmplantation.Thereferencelanduseissetto20086andadiscountingperiodoflandusechangeissetto20years(annualizedemissions).
4LacalculadoradeFactoresdeEmisióndelosCombustiblesColombianos-FECOC-.tienecomoobjetofacilitarel cálculo de emisiones de CO2 generados por el aprovechamiento energético de los combustibles queactualmente hacen parte importante de la canasta energética Colombiana.http://www.upme.gov.co/calculadora_emisiones/aplicacion/calculadora.html#5http://www.pre-sustainability.com/62008isthecut-offyear,whichmeansthatLUCoccurredbefore2008arenotaccountedfor.Withinthisstudythereferenceyearof2008isnotrelevantsincetheplantationsareestablishedlater.
Indirect land use change (iLUC) effects are not considered in accordance with the REDguidelines,butpotentialiLUCarediscussedinchapter4.4.
2.5 Greenhousegases
Greenhousegases(GHGs)aresubstancesknowntocontributetoglobalwarmingandincludecarbon dioxide, methane, dinitrogen oxide and chlorofluorocarbons amongst othersubstances.TheGHGsareweightedbasedonanidentifiedglobalwarmingpotential(GWP)expressedingramsofcarbondioxide(CO2)equivalents.
ThefractionofaninitialCO2pulsethatremainsintheatmosphereattimetisbasedonthedecayfunctionoftheBern2.5CCcarboncyclemodel.Sincethedecayandradiativeefficiencyof other GHG differs from CO2, the characterization factors are dependent on the timehorizon.TheGWPofotherGHGiscommonlycalculatedovertimehorizonof20,100and500years.Withinthisstudytheassessmentperiodofmodellingtheemissionsandtheimpactissetat100years.ThistimehorizoniswidelyacceptedandrecommendedbyEURED,PAS2050,RSPOandtheILCDguidelines(BSI2011;EuropeanCommission2010).
ThegreenhousegasestakenintoaccountareCO2,N2O(CO2equivalenceof296)andCH4(CO2equivalence of 23). However, for the background database we use the full list of GHGsubstancesas implementedintheGWPindicator(IPCC2007) inSimaPro,whichleadstoaslightoverestimationoftheGHGemission.
Asmentionedinchapter2.4.3thebiogenicCO2andmonoxideemissionsareexcludedfromthestudy.However,theGWPfactorfornon-CO2emissionsoriginatingfrombiogeniccarbonsources (e.g. CO2 removed from the atmosphere and subsequently emitted as CH4) areconsideredandtheemissionfactoriscorrectedinorderintoaccounttheremovaloftheCO2
Theparameters,methodologicalchoicesandassumptionsusedwhenmodelingthesystemspresentacertaindegreeofuncertaintyandvariability.It is importanttoevaluatewhetherthe choice of parameters, methods, and assumptions significantly influences the study’sconclusionsandtowhatextentthefindingsaredependentuponcertainsetsofconditions.Sensitivity analyses are used to study the influence of the uncertainty and variability ofmodeling assumptions and data on the results and conclusions, thereby evaluating theirrobustnessandreliability.Sensitivityanalyseshelpintheinterpretationphasetounderstandthe uncertainty of results and identify limitations. The following sensitivity analyses areconductedinthisstudy:
• Electricity generation at oilmill:The biomass based electricity generation using craft engineoperatesonanorganicrankingcycleiscomparedtodieselelectricitygeneration.
• Transportation routes: Two different export scenarios of the biodiesel (via Venezuela andCartagena)arecalculated.
Theuncertaintiesrelatedtotheinventorydatawerenotquantified.However,thesensitivityof results on different inventory assumptions was tackled by the evaluation of differentscenarios.
Overallsustainability:Althoughthecarbonfootprintingmethodologyisadequatetoassessa key aspect of environmental sustainability, it is capturing neither other environmentalimpacts(e.g.acidification,eutrophication,toxicity,biodiversity,etc.)northesocio-economicimpactstheygenerate.Inordertoobtainacompleteviewofsustainability,theresultsoftheCFstudyshouldbeinterpretedtogetherwithotherassessments, i.e.twinstudydescribingsocio-economic and environmental conditions at El Cimarron commissioned by Prestige(Wiig,2017)
Therearetwodominantlandcoverinthestudysite,whicharesavannasandgalleryforestalong the surface water bodies. Oil palm plantations will only be established on naturalgrasslandoronlandunderuse(e.g.pastureoragriculturalland),leavingabufferareaofat50m8tothenextwaterbody,asindicatedinFigure3.
AccordingIPCC“grasslandsvarygreatlyintheirdegreeandintensityofmanagement,fromextensivelymanagedrangelandsandsavannahs–whereanimalstockingratesandfireregimes are the main management variables – to intensively managed (e.g., with8Forthenewplantationsabufferareaof150mwillbeimplemented.
fertilization, irrigation, species changes) continuous pasture and hay land. Grasslandsgenerally have vegetation dominated by perennial grasses, and grazing is thepredominantlanduse.”(IPCC2006,Chapter6).
The direct carbon emissions caused by the direct land use change (LUC) are calculatedaccordingtotheTier1methodologybyIPCC.TheaboveandbelowgroundbiomassvaluesofthedifferentecosystemaretakenfromliteratureandarelistedinTable1.Thecarbonstockofoilpalmistheaveragecarbonstockaboutthewholecrop.
Ithastobenotedthat“grassland”isnotaclearlydefinedtermandthatthecarbonstockofdifferentgrasslandtypescanvarysignificantly.Toanalysethesensitivityofthecarbonstockdataontheoverallresultsandconclusion,weusetheconservativevalueof15.75tC/ha.Asadditional sensitivity analysis we calculate the effect of converting scrubland and galleryforests.
3.2.3 Soilcarbonstockchange
ThesoilcarbonstockchangesaremodeledbasedontheTier1approachproposedbyIPCC(2006),asspecifiedby theCommissiondecisiononLUC (EC,2010).Theactual soil carbonstocks(SOCintC/ha)iscalculatedbasedonthesoilcarbonstockundernaturallandcover(SOCREF) and the influence of land use (FLU),management (FMG) and input (FI) factors. FLUconsiderstheytypeanddurationoflanduse,FMGconsidersthetillageforcroplandandthemanagement for grassland, while the FI considers the amount fertiliser and crop residuemanagement(seeIPCC2006formoredetails).TheSOCREFisdeterminedbythesoiltype(highactiveclaysoils),whichhaveacarbonstockof65tC/ha(EC,2010).
Thelifecycleofanoilpalmusuallystartsinanursery,whereseedlingsdevelopinpolybagsforabout10 to20months.Beforeplanting thesiteshouldbe leveledandallvegetation toaradius of 1m around the pit (deeper than 1m) should be cleared. Commercial oil palmplantationsaretypicallyestablishedasmonoculturalfieldsusingasymmetricspacingof9mx9m.
TheamountofNPKfertilizercurrentlyapplied(markedingreeninTable3)doesnotrepresentthe average fertilizer amount, since the plantation are not yetmature. For this studywecalculatedthefertilizerapplicationbasedontheagronomicrecommendations:
Not all thenutrientswill be suppliedbymineral fertilizer.A share is also suppliedby thecompostproducedfromtheorganicoilmillresiduesandbyproducts.Perhaabout2tonsofcompostwill be applied (2.2/1.2/2.9NPK ratio and amoisture contentof 50%). Composttypically showsahighernutrientavailability forplantgrowthasmineral fertilizer.For thisstudyhowever,wehaveassumedarationof1:1,reducingthemineralfertilizerdemandto121kgN,44kgP2O5and275kgK2Operhectare.
The followingdescribes the transportof the inputmaterials (fertilizer)and themachineryusedforharvest.
Fertilizingandpesticides:Amain fertilizerofoilpalmplantation is thecompost,which istransported from the oil mill back to the plantation by truck. Themineral fertilizers andpesticidesarealsotransportedbytrucktothefieldborderanddistributedusinglabors.
The airborne emissions caused by fertilizing are listed in Table 57. The emissions arecalculatedaccordingtotheworldfoodlifecycledatabaseguidelines.
For ammonia emissions the emission factors from the EMEP-EEA air emission inventoryguidebookTier2approachareconsidered(EEA2013)todeterminetheshareofappliedNlost as NH3. For urea theNH3 emissions are 20% of the total nitrogen applied, for otherfertilizerstheemissionsaretypicallylower(1-9%).Theappliedcropresiduesinclude9tons
Clarificationanddrying:Theoilisclarifiedthroughthegravityseparationmethodwhichisbasedondifferentdensities. The clarifiedoil is stored in tanks. Theoil is dried to reducemoisture,eitherbyheatinginatanksystemorbyatmosphericorvacuumdrying.
Effluent treatment: The oilywaterwhich is the by-product of the clarification process ispassedthroughcentrifugesinordertorecoveroil.Theremainingeffluentistreatedinawastewatertreatmentsystem,i.e.compostingatElCimarrón.
The average extraction rate of 21t CPO per 100 ton FFB is in linewith the average CPOextractionrateforEasternColombiaof20.9%.Theaveragemassbalanceofpalmkernelofabout4.5% is slightlyhigheras specified in (Fedepalma,2015)but loweras the literatureaverage.
The conversion of biomass energy to electricity has a typical electric efficiency of 10%10.Consequently theuseof 1kg EFBwith a lower heating valueof 18MJ generates 1.8MJofelectricity(or0.5kWh).
Carbondioxide,biogenic kg 2.4E-01 1.5E-01 39'597Carbonmonoxide,biogenic kg 9.1E-06 1.2E-05 1.1Methane,biogenic kg 5.6E-07 7.4E-07 0.1Dinitrogenmonoxide kg 3.0E-06 3.9E-06 0.4Nitrogenoxides kg 1.1E-04 1.5E-04 13.8
ThePOME(palmoilmilleffluent)isgeneratedduringtheoilextractionprocessintheoilmill.Thewastewater contains high amounts of organicmatter and is usually treated in openlagoons. However, at Prestige the POME is used for composting, where it’s mixed withchoppedEFB,fibersandshells.
ThecompostingtechnologyisusingaerationinordertoavoidCH4generationandirrigationinordertocontrolthetemperature.TheaerationandirrigationarecontrolledbasedonthemonitoredtemperatureandonCO2andCH4concentrations.Thecompostingprocessimpliestheaerobicdecayoforganicmaterial.Thisreactionresultsinreleaseofcarbondioxideandwatervaporandpracticallynomethaneasitwouldhappeninanaerobicdecay. EveryweekthecompostpilesareturnedusingtheTracTurn3.7truck.After12weeksthedegradation of the organic feedstock is sufficiently decomposed and reaches a suitablemoistureleveltobeusedasorganicfertilizerhelpingtoimprovesoilstructureandnutrientcontent.
Since the rainfall at the site location is over 2000mmper year, the plants are paved andcoveredinordertocontrolthecompostingprocess.
Product Amount Unit Energycontent Allocationfactor
CPO 21.0 ton 37 MJ/kg 86%
PalmKernelOil 2.0 ton 17 MJ/kg 4%
PalmKernelMeal 2.5 ton 37 MJ/kg 10%
3.5 Biodieselproduction(ep)
We use the GHG emissions as specified in the EU RED guideline for refinement andtransesterification.1.048tonofCPOarerequiredandtoproduceonetonofPMEand105.6kgofglycerin.ThelowerheatingvalueofPMEis37.2MJ/kg.
The aim is to export the biodiesel via Venezuela, using bargewhen the RioMeta carriessufficientwater(8months)andtousetheroaduntilPuertoCarreñobyOrinocoriverduringthedryseason(4months).Duetopoliticalrestrictions,thisrouteisnotoperationalatthemomentandthusweusetheexportationrouteviaCartagenawhichisalreadyestablishedasanalternative(sensitivityanalysis).
Rainy season (8month): It is possible to transport biodiesel fromNuevaAntioquia to theAtlanticOcean, throughVenezuela, by fluvialmeans using theMeta12 andOrinoco River.Duringwinter,rivertransportationpredominates,butthereislackoflandtransportationtothedocks.Actually,theMetariverhasaconsiderableflowthatallowsitsnavigationduring8monthsoftheyear,fromApriltoDecember.However,thereareplanstodredgetheriverandturnitseaworthyduringallseasons.TheOrinocoriverisnavigableforboatstransitallovertheyear.OnceinPuertoOrdaz,biofuelscanbedirectedtoEuropebymaritimemeans.
Dry season (4months):During dry season theMeta river is not navigated, so terrestrialtransportshouldbeperformed.Nopavedroadexists,butadirtroadexistswhichcanbeusedbytrucksduringdrymonths(fromJanuarytoMarch).Nevertheless,studieshavebegunforconstructionamajorroutethatwilllinkthecenterofthecountrywiththeOrinoquíazone.ItwillconnectPuenteArimenaandPuertoGaitán(Meta),withPuertoCarreño(Vichada).Theproposal deadline is until the end of 2017, but it most likely takes longer to finalizeconstructions.
Transportation by fluvialmeans should be performed using theMeta andOrinoco River.Actually,theMetariverhasaconsiderableflowwhichallowstonavigateitduring8monthsoftheyear,fromApriltoDecember.However,thereareplanstodredgetheriverandmakeittravelableallovertheyear.TheOrinocoriverdoesnotpresentinconveniencesfortheboatstransitthroughouttheyear.
Rainy season (8months): The other routewould be through theMeta River fromNuevaAntioquiatoPuertoGaitan.Actually,theMetariverhasaconsiderableflowthatallowstonavigateitduring8monthsoftheyear,fromApriltoDecember,along800kmfromPuertoLópeztoPuertoCarreño.OnceinPuertoLópez,thebiofuelcanbetransportedtoCartagenabytruck.
According to theEURED, the fossil fuel comparatorEF shallbe the latestavailableactualaverageemissionsfromthefossilpartofpetrolanddieselconsumedintheCommunityasreportedunderDirective98/70/EC.Ifnosuchdataareavailable,thevalueusedshallbe83,8gCO2eq/MJ(valueusedforthisstudy).
It has to be noted that the proposed update of the fossil reference value will be of 94gCO2eq/J,whichwillsignificantlyincreasetheGHGsavings(EC,2016a)AnnexV,C.19.
4 ResultsandDiscussion
4.1 GHGbalanceofbiodiesel
EachMJ of biodiesel combusted is linked to -28.6 g of GHG emission. The negativeGHGemissions iscausedbythecarbonsequestrationduringplantgrowth,whilethemainGHGemissionislinkedtoemissionsfromtheoilmillandthebiodieselproduction.Inthefollowingtheimpactscausedineverylifecyclestagearedescribedinmoredetails.
InFigure9theaverageglobalwarmingpotentialofoilpalmcultivationisindicated,ismainlyrelated to fertilizer production and N2O emissions due to fertilizer application anddecompositionofcropresidues.
Figure 10 shows the carbon footprint of oil palm cultivation including the carbon stockchangescausedbyoilpalmplantations.OverallmorecarbonissequesteredbyoilpalmtreescomparedtothelifecycleGHGemissionsrelatedtothecultivation.Thecarbonsequestrationislinkedtomovingfromlowcarbonstockarea(lowcarbonstockgrassland&savanna)tooilpalmplantationwithrelativelyhighercarbonstocks(seechapter3.2).
ThedefaultscenarioisbasedonEUREDvaluesforgrassland(8tC/ha)andshowsignificantcarbonstocksequestration.Evenifmoreconservativevaluesforthecarbonstockofgrasslandareconsidered(16tC/ha)oreventheconversionofscrubland(53tC/ha)showsignificantnetbenefits. Only if gallery forests (180 tC/ha) are clear-cut significant amounts of carbon
Last,ithastobenotedthattheLUCbenefitsandimpactsareuniformlydistributedover20yearstimehorizon(annualisedemissions).Oncethe20yearsarepassed,noLUCcreditsaregiventotheoilpalmcultivation,sincethepastandcurrentlanduseareoilpalmplantations(no LUC change occurs). If grassland is converted in 2017 (default scenario) the carbonfootprintofoilpalmcultivationremainsconstant(-9617kgCO2eq/ha)untiltheyear2037andfromyear2038onwardsthecarbonfootprintis(1699kgCO2eq/ha,seeFigure9)sincetheLUCbenefitsarenotanymoreaccountedfor(noLUCscenarioinFigure10).
4.1.2 Palmoilmillandbiodieselplant
As indicated inTable16, themainGHGemissionsrelatedtooilextraction is linkedtotheenergyconsumption,whichiscurrentlyfossilbased.Inalargescaleset-upapartoftheEFBbiomasswillbeusedinanorganicrankingenginetoauto-generateelectricity.Consequently,theemissionsreducesignificantly.
InColombia,thePOMEtreatmentinopenlagoonsunderanaerobicconditionstypicallyleadstoamuchhigherGHGintensityascomparedtotheoptimizedcompostsystemimplementedattheelCimarronsite.TheCUEstudyindicatedaGHGintensityof30gCO2eqperMJfuelcombustedand6gCO2eqperMJifmethaneiscaptured(CUE2012).(Castanheira&Freire,2016)indicatedthattheGHGintensityofpalmoilextractionforbiogasflared(2.3gCO2eqMJ−1)was about eight times lower than for biogas released into the atmosphere (19.0 gCO2eqMJ−1).REDspecifiesprocessingGHGemissionsof35g/MJand13gCO2eq/MJwithmethane capture (including both the oil mill and transesterification emissions) (EU-Commission,2008).
The crude oil refining and trans-esterification is responsible for 17.9g CO2eq per MJ, inaccordancewiththeEUREDdefaultvalues.
The GHG intensity of transport and distribution ranges from 5.5 gCO2 per MJ of fuelcombustedfortheexportviaVenezuelato8.1gCO2perMJoffuelcombustedfortheexportviaCartagena.Therelativelyremote location leadstohigheremissionsoftransportasthedefaultvaluespublishedbyRED(5gCO2eqperMJ).
UsingbiodieselfromelCimarrónisprojectedtoshow134%lessGHGemissionascomparedtofossildiesel.Thisisbasedontheassumptionthattheoilpalmplantationsareestablishedon low carbon-stock grassland, that the by-products are used optimally (e.g. for autogenerationofelectricity)andthatthebiodieselisexportedthroughVenezuela.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
ExportviaVenezuela(default)
ExportviaCartagena
Carbonfootprint(gCO
2eq/MJ)
TruckinColombia
Barge
Transoceanicship
TruckinEU
Depot&Fillingstation
Quantis CarbonFootprintofBiodieselfromPrestige
March14,2017 43
Figure 12:GHGemissions savings of biodiesel compared to fossil fuels (in%), left figure. Biodiesel baselinescenarioCO2equivalentemissionsbysource,noticelandusechangeisnegativeasthereismorecarboninpalmsthanformersavannah(gCO2eq/MJ),rightfigure.
As explained in chapter 4.1.1, the renewal of oil palm plantations are not considered aschangingthelandusechange(thusnoLUCbenefitsafter20yearscanbeattributed).Evenwithout accounting for land use benefits, palm biodiesel saves 60% of GHG emissions ascomparedtofossildieselifexportedviaVenezuela(43%ifexportedviaCartagena).
Figure 14: The area under cultivation (in ha) at the top and the associatedGHG savings (in%) of biodieselcomparedtofossilfuelatthebottom,baselinescenario.
TheresultsarealsoinlinewiththeWWFstudy,whichindicatedGHGsavingsofmorethan60% formost areas of Vichada (WWF, 2014).Only if Gallery forests are cut the emissionreductiontargetscannotbemet(redareas,whichareforbiddenbylaw).
TheEuropeanCommissionproposedachangeofthecurrentEUREDmethodology(EC,2016a,2016b). Themain differences in terms of GHG calculation are the higher value for fossilreference(94gCO2eq/MJinsteadof83.8gCO2eq/MJ),loweremissionfactorsformethane(23insteadof25CO2eq)anddinitrogenoxide(296insteadof298CO2eq),thehigherdefaultemissionsvalues for transportanddistribution (6.9 insteadof5gCO2/MJ)and that thethresholdofGHGsavingsincreasedto70%forbiofuelswhichareproducedininstallationsstartingoperationafter1January2021.
Prospective study: The oil palm plantations and biodiesel production plant are not yetestablished. Within this study realistic estimates were made and the sensitivity of keyparameters was evaluated in order to provide an indication about the expected carbonfootprintofelCimarrónbiodiesel.However,oncetheproductionsystemisimplementeditisrecommendedtoupdatethestudywithrealdata.
Directandindirectlandusechangeeffects:Thisstudyassumesthattheoilpalmplantationsareestablishedonnaturalandextensivelyusedgrassland.BesidesthedirectLUC(consideredinthisstudy)alsoindirectlandusechangemightoccurduetothereplacementofpastures.Further, it isalsopossible thatminorpartsof the60.000hacould triggeraconversionofagriculturalland.Inthepresentstudypotentialindirecteffectsofreplacinglandpasturesandagriculturallandarenotconsideredinthebaselinescenario.Itisassumedthattheindirecteffects are marginal, given the extensive use of the pastures and the huge potential ofintensifyingcurrentcattlefarming.InordertoestimatethecontributionofthepotentialiLUCeffectontheoverallresultsweincludedtheiLUCfactorproposedforoilcropsproposedbythe European commission, which represents a worst case scenario for the Colombianconditions.
Otherenvironmentalandsocio-economicindicators:AccordingtoISO14040/44acompletesetofenvironmentalindicatorneedstobeevaluatedforcomparativeassertion.Inthecaseof biofuels, several studies underlined the trade-off between GHG savings and increaseimpactssuchaseutrophication13duetofertilizerapplication,ecotoxicityduetopesticideuse,loss of biodiversity due to land transformation amongst others. The national study inColombia revealed significant impacts of biofuels if also other environmental aspects areconsidered(CUE,2012),whileotherstudiesshowbenefits(Gilroyetal.,2015).Further,also
other indicators about the social and economic impacts shall be considered for informeddecisionmaking.Theimpactscanbepositive(e.g.createjobs)ornegative(e.g.landrightsofindigenous).
5 Conclusionsandrecommendations
5.1 Conclusion
• BiodieselfromelCimarrónisprojectedtofulfiltheEUREDGHGcriteriabyshowing134%lessGHGemissionascomparedto fossildiesel.This isbasedontheassumptionthat theoilpalmplantations are established on low carbon-stock grassland, that the by-products are usedoptimally (e.g. for auto generation of electricity) and that the biodiesel is exported throughVenezuela.
• TheGHGsavingpotential is sensitive to the landconversion.Only ifoilpalmplantationsareestablishedonlowcarbonland,whichismainlythecase in losLlanos,theGHGcriteriacanbemet.Ifgalleryforestarecut(forbiddenbylaw)thebiodieselproductionisnotcompliantwiththeEUREDGHGcriteria.
• Economyofscaleallowsoptimaluseandtreatmentofby-products. IntermsofGHGbalance,the treatmentof POMEandEFB is of special importancedue topotentialmethaneemissionsduringthetreatmentanddecomposition.
ItisrecommendedthattheperformanceofthebiodieselproductionsysteminelCimarrónis monitored and that the carbon footprint study is updated frequently and that thedevelopmentoftheEUREDdirectiveiscloselyfollowed.
Castanheira, É. G., Acevedo, H., & Freire, F. (2014). Greenhouse gas intensity of palm oilproducedinColombiaaddressingalternativelandusechangeandfertilizationscenarios.Applied Energy, 114, 958–967.https://doi.org/http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.09.010
Castanheira, É. G., & Freire, F. (2016). Environmental life cycle assessment of biodieselproduced with palm oil from Colombia. The International Journal of Life CycleAssessment,1–14.article.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-016-1097-6
EC. (2016a).Annexes to the Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and theCouncilonthepromotionoftheuseofenergyfromrenewablesources(recast).Brussels,Belgium.
EC.(2016b).ProposalforaDIRECTIVEOFTHEEUROPEANPARLIAMENTANDOFTHECOUNCILon the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources (recast). Brussels,Belgium.
Leuenberger, M., & Huber-Hotz, A. (2006). Botschaft zur Änderung desMineralölsteuergesetzes(techreport).Bern.
NanaYaw,A.(2008).LIFECYLEASSESSMENTOFMARGARINEPRODUCTIONFROMPALMOILIN GHANA A Thesis submitted to the Department of Chemical Engineering , KwameNkrumahUniversityofScienceandtechnology.
Penny,T.,Fisher,K.,&Collins,M.(2012).GHGProtocolProductLifeCycleAccountingandReportingStandardSectorGuidance forPharmaceuticalandMedicalDeviceProductsPilot Testing Draft August 2012 GHG Protocol Product Life Cycle Accounting andReporting Standard Sector Guidance for Pharmace. London, UK: EnvironmentalResourcesManagementLimited.
Thecarbonfootprintisdominatedbythecarbonsequestrationduringoilpalmcultivation,whilethemainemissionresultfromcultivationandtransportation.Thecarbonfootprintisinthe same range as published in other literature for CPO in Colombia (Daigle&Gautreau-Daigle, 2001)(Castanheira,Acevedo,&Freire,2014).Castanheiraet al. (2014)publishedarangefrom-0.4to–1.7kgCO2eqkg1palmoiliftheoilpalmiscultivatedonformersavannaland.
Themargarine production frompalm stearin and palm kernel oilmight be an interestingbusinessopportunityforPrestigeColombiaifsoldontheVenezuelanmarket.
Margarineproductionprocessinvolvesthedeodorisation,bleachingandinter-esterificationofoil.ThecarbonfootprintdataformargarineproductionfromCPOistakenfromliterature(Nana Yaw, 2008). For each kg ofmargarine 1.0525 kg of CPO are used and the carbonfootprintisspecifiedinTable18.