Emergy analysis of the resource use in greenhouse crop production and of the resource basis of the Swedish economy

Abstract

During the past decades there has been an increasing concern about degradation of environmental systems. This has lead to an increased interest in environmental accounting methods providing decision support on issues regarding sustainability and effects of human activities. In the long run, crop production systems must be environmentally and socially adapted as well as productive. This thesis uses emergy analysis to adress issues of resource flows, environmental stress and sustainability of conventional and organic tomato production systems. An analysis of the Swedish economy was also performed. Since this larger economic system provides purchased inputs for the crop producing nurseries, this analysis on the national level is necessary to visualise resource flows of the subsystems. Trends concerning use of resources, trade, environmental loading and sustainability between 1988 and 1996 were addressed. It is concluded that the sustainability of the Swedish economy will be enhanced by decreasing the dependency on imported non-renewable resources. A similar conclusion is drawn on the company level. By replacing fossil fuels for heating of greenhouses with a more renewable locally produced fuel, such as wood powder from logging residues, the sustainability of tomato production systems can be improved. Raising the yield was found to be an important factor for enhanced efficiency in resource use of the studied organic tomato production systems. The replacement of fuels was shown to be more important than the fertilizer strategy in directing the tomato production systems towards sustainability.

Keywords

emergy; energy; environmental load; fuel; organic; resource; sustainability; Sweden; tomato; wood powder

Published in

Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae. Agraria
1999, number: 191
Publisher: Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

SLU Authors

• Lagerberg Fogelberg, Charlotte

  • Horticulture, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Environmental Sciences and Nature Conservation

Publication identifier

• ISBN: 91-576-5742-4

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/107620