Life Cycle Assessment to Study the Carbon Footprint of System Components for Colorado Blue Spruce Field Production and Use

The contributions of interrelated production system components of a field-grown, 2-m-tall, 5-cm-caliper Picea pungens (colorado blue spruce) in the upper midwestern (liner) and lower midwestern (finished tree) regions of the United States to its carbon footprint were analyzed using life cycle assessment protocols. The seed-to-landscape carbon footprint was 13.558 kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), including sequestration of 9.14 kg CO2e during production. The global warming potential (GWP) from equipment use was the dominant contributor to the carbon footprint of production. Seventy-six percent of the GWP investments during field production occurred at harvest. Querying the model, among other things, revealed that adding one year to the field production phase would add less than3% to the seed-to-landscape GWP ofthe product.The weightedpositive impact ofcarbon(C) sequestration during a 50-year life was 593 kg CO2e. After its useful life, takedown and disposal would result in emissions of 148 kg CO2e, resulting in a net positive, life cycle impact on atmospheric CO2 of ' 431 kg CO2e.

[1]  Cathy Hawes,et al.  The carbon footprints of food crop production , 2009 .

[2]  Seth Debolt,et al.  Life cycle assessment of native plants and marginal lands for bioenergy agriculture in Kentucky as a model for south‐eastern USA , 2009 .

[3]  G. Scarascia Mugnozza,et al.  LCA METHODOLOGY APPLIED TO VARIOUS TYPOLOGY OF GREENHOUSES , 2005 .

[4]  F. Brentrup,et al.  GHG emissions and energy efficiency in European nitrogen fertiliser production and use. , 2008 .

[5]  D. H. Vaughan,et al.  Predicting Tractor Diesel Fuel Consumption , 2010 .

[6]  E. Mcpherson,et al.  Carbon dioxide reduction through urban forestry: guidelines for professional and volunteer tree planters , 1999 .

[7]  R. B. Mitchell,et al.  Soil Carbon Storage by Switchgrass Grown for Bioenergy , 2008, BioEnergy Research.

[8]  David J. Nowak,et al.  Atmospheric carbon dioxide reduction by Chicago's urban forest. , 1994 .

[9]  G. Marland,et al.  Net carbon flux from agricultural ecosystems: methodology for full carbon cycle analyses. , 2002, Environmental pollution.

[10]  Thomas Nemecek,et al.  Life cycle assessment of Swiss organic farming systems , 2006 .

[11]  Henrikke Baumann,et al.  The hitch hiker's guide to LCA : an orientation in life cycle assessment methodology and application , 2004 .

[12]  H. Rogers,et al.  A Review of Elevated Atmospheric CO2 Effects on Plant Growth and Water Relations: Implications for Horticulture , 2011 .

[13]  Daniel L. Sandars,et al.  Energy and environmental burdens of organic and non-organic agriculture and horticulture , 2006 .

[14]  Y Aldentun.  Life cycle inventory of forest seedling production — from seed to regeneration site , 2002 .

[15]  Kyle W Meisterling,et al.  Life cycle assessment of greenhouse gas emissions from plug-in hybrid vehicles: implications for policy. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[16]  Alissa Kendall,et al.  A life cycle greenhouse gas inventory of a tree production system , 2012, The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment.

[17]  Giovanni Russo,et al.  ENVIRONMENTAL EVALUATION BY MEANS OF LCA REGARDING THE ORNAMENTAL NURSERY PRODUCTION IN ROSE AND SOWBREAD GREENHOUSE CULTIVATION , 2008 .

[18]  J. C. Stevens,et al.  Effects of Urban Tree Management and Species Selection on Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide , 2002, Arboriculture & Urban Forestry.

[19]  A. Prokushkin,et al.  Critical analysis of root : shoot ratios in terrestrial biomes , 2006 .

[20]  G. Gaillard,et al.  LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION SYSTEMS : CURRENT ISSUES AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES , 2007 .

[21]  D. Ingram.  Life cycle assessment of a field-grown red maple tree to estimate its carbon footprint components , 2012, The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment.

[22]  S. Prior,et al.  The Importance of Determining Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Potential in Ornamental Horticulture , 2011 .

[23]  Daniele Cambria,et al.  A life cycle assessment case study for walnut tree (Juglans regia L.) seedlings production , 2011 .

[24]  Ye Wu,et al.  Development and applications of GREET 2.7 -- The Transportation Vehicle-CycleModel. , 2006 .

[25]  Patrizia Buttol,et al.  LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) of roses and cyclamens in greenhouse cultivation , 2008 .

[26]  Constantine Samaras,et al.  Life cycle assessment of greenhouse gas emissions from plug-in hybrid vehicles: implications for policy. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[27]  Anna Lúcia Mourad,et al.  A simple methodology for elaborating the life cycle inventory of agricultural products , 2007 .

[28]  Urmila M. Diwekar,et al.  New stochastic simulation capability applied to greenhouse gases, regulated emissions, and energy use in transportation (Greet) model , 2006 .

[29]  G. Marland,et al.  A synthesis of carbon sequestration, carbon emissions, and net carbon flux in agriculture: comparing tillage practices in the United States , 2002 .

[30]  T. Bruulsema,et al.  Review of greenhouse gas emissions from crop production systems and fertilizer management effects , 2009 .