Determining sustainable lignocellulosic bioenergy systems in the Cape Winelands District Municipality, South Africa

• Main Author: Von Doderer, Clemens Cornelius Christian
• Other Authors: Kleynhans, Theo Ernst
• Format: Others
• Language: en_ZA
• Published: Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University 2012
• Subjects: Life-cycle assessment (LCA); Multi-period budgeting (MPB); Multi-criteria decision-making analysis (MCDA); Bioenergy; Biomass energy > South Africa > Western Cape; Enery crops > South Africa > Western Cape; Dissertations > Agricultural economics; Theses > Agricultural economics
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/71838

Thesis (PhD(Agric))--Stellenbosch University, 2012. === ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The energy paradigm shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources is driven, among others, by a growing sustainability awareness, necessitating more sophisticated measurements in terms of a wider range of criteria. Technical efficiency, financial profitability, environmental friendliness and social acceptance are some of the factors determining the sustainability of renewable energy systems. The resulting complexity and conflicting decision criteria, however, constitute major barriers to processing the information and decision-making based on the information. Seeking to implement local bioenergy systems, policymakers of the Cape Winelands District Municipality (CWDM), South Africa, are confronted with such a problem. Following a case study approach, this study illustrates how life-cycle assessment (LCA), multi-period budgeting (MPB) and geographic information systems (GIS) can aid the decision-making process by providing financial-economic, socio-economic and environmental friendliness performance data in a structured and transparent manner, allowing for a comparison of the magnitude of each considered criterion along the life-cycle. However, as the environmental impacts cannot readily be expressed in monetary terms on a cardinal scale, these considerations are given less attention or are omitted completely in a market economy. By measuring the various considerations on an ordinal scale and by attaching weights to them using the multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) approach, this study, illustrates how to internalise externalities as typical market failures, aiding policymakers of the CWDM to choose the most sustainable bioenergy system. Following the LCA approach, 37 lignocellulosic bioenergy systems, encompassing different combinations of type of harvesting and primary transport, type of pretreatment (comminution, drying, and fast pyrolysis) and location thereof (roadside or landing of the central conversion plant), type of secondary transport from the roadside to the central conversion plant, and type of biomass upgrading and conversion into electricity, were assessed against five financial-economic viability criteria, three socio-economic potential criteria and five environmental impact criteria. The quantitative performance data were then, as part of the MCDA process, translated into a standardised ‘common language’ of relative performance. An expert group attached weights to the considered criteria using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP). The ‘financial-economic viability’ main criterion received a weight of almost 60%, ‘socio-economic potential’, nearly 25% and ‘lowest environmental impact’, the remainder of around 16%. Taking the prerequisite of financial-economic viability into consideration, the preferred option across all areas of the CWDM (despite various levels of productivity) comprises a feller-buncher for harvesting, a forwarder for primary transportation, mobile comminution at the roadside, secondary transport in truck-container-trailer combinations and an integrated gasification system for the conversion into electricity. === AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die energie paradigma verandering van fossielbrandstowwe na hernubare energiebronne word gedryf deur ‘n groeiende klem op volhoubaarheid, wat ook meer gesofistikeerde meting in terme van ‘n wyer verskeidenheid maatstawwe vereis. Tegniese doeltreffendheid, finansiële winsgewendheid, omgewingsvriendelikheid en sosiale aanvaarbaarheid is sommige van die faktore wat die volhoubaarheid van hernubare energie stelsels bepaal. Die verskeidenheid oorwegings bring egter kompleksiteit en konflik mee by die verwerking van inligting en die besluitneming wat daarop berus. Beleidmakers van die Kaapse Wynland Distriksmunisipaliteit wat ten doel het om plaaslik bio-energie stelsels te implementeer, word met hierdie probleem gekonfronteer. Hierdie ondersoek illustreer aan die hand van ‘n gevallestudie benadering hoe lewensiklus analise, multiperiode begroting en geografiese inligtingstelsels besluitneming kan ondersteun deur die voorsiening van finansieel-ekonomiese, sosio-ekonomiese (indiensneming) en omgewingsvriendelikheid prestasie data op ‘n gestruktureerde en deursigtige wyse. Dit maak die vergelyking van die waardes van al die kriteria by elke fase van die lewensiklus moontlik. Aangesien die omgewingseffekte nie geredelik in monetêre terme op ‘n kardinale skaal gemeet kan word nie, kry hulle binne die markekonomie minder aandag of word selfs buite rekening gelaat. Deur hierdie verskeidenheid kriteria op ‘n ordinale skaal te meet en gewigte met behulp van multikriteria besluitneming aan hulle toe te ken, toon hierdie ondersoek hoe om eksternaliteite as tipiese markmislukkings te internaliseer om beleidmakers van die Kaapse Wynland Distriksmunisipaliteit in staat te stel om die mees volhoubare bio-energie stelsel te kies. Met behulp van lewensiklus analise is 37 lignosellulose bio-energie stelsels geïdentifiseer as verskillende kombinasies van oes van die bome, primêre vervoer van houtstompe, vooraf verwerking (verspaandering, droging, vinnige pirolise), die ligging van hierdie aktiwiteite (langs ‘n plantasie of by ‘n sentrale omsettingsaanleg), tipe sekondêre vervoer van houtspaanders vanaf die plantasie na die sentrale omsettingsaanleg en tipe biomassa opgradering en omsetting van die houtspaanders na elektrisiteit. Die verskillende stelsels is gemeet aan die hand van vyf finansieel-ekonomiese kriteria, drie indiensneming potensiaal kriteria en vyf omgewingsimpak kriteria. Die kwantitatiewe metings is deur middel van multikriteria besluitneming omgeskakel na ’n gestandaardiseerde “gemeenskaplike taal” van relatiewe prestasie. Lede van ‘n ekspertgroep het gewigte is aan die onderskeie kriteria met behulp van die analitiese hierargie proses toegeken. Aan die finansieel-ekonomiese lewensvatbaarheid hoof kriterium is ‘n gewig van by die 60% toegeken, aan die indiensnemingspotensiaal bykans 25% en aan omgewingsvriendelikheid sowat 16%. Die voorkeur kombinasie vir al die areas van die Kaapse Wynland Distriksmunisipaliteit sluit in ‘n saag-bondelaar vir die oesproses, ‘n plantasie-vragmotor vir primêre vervoer, mobiele verspaandering langs die plantasie, ‘n vragmotor-skeepshouer-treiler kombinasies vir die sekondêre vervoer van houtspaanders en ‘n geïntegreerde vergassingstelsel vir die omsetting van houtspaanders na elektrisiteit.