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The High Speed Rail Study has been released!

The environmental assessment of the project was performed by a cooperation between MiSA, Asplan Viak, Verkehrswissenschaftliches Institut Stuttgart Gmbh (VWI Stuttgart), Brekke & Strand Akustikk AS and Avinett.

MiSA has performed the climate calculations, which are based on lifecycle emissions of climate gases during the construction and operation phases of the high speed rail line, and compared the results with the “business as usual” scenario, that is, without the construction of the new line, considering only existing modes of transport.

Our calculations show that there is large variation in climate impact of the different high speed rail corridor alternatives considered.

A total of 12 corridors were considered in the study, all of which differed greatly with respect to terrain challenges, length and projected passengers.

Some corridors present climate benefits
The study identifies the corridors with a payback period within the 60-year assessment period of the study. The most promising corridor is the line Ø2:P between Oslo and Trondheim via Østerdalen. This line has the shortest payback period and the most climate benefit of the corridors studied.
Additionally, two of the corridors to Bergen also have a payback period within the assessment period of the study. These are N1:Q to Bergen via Numedal, and Ha2:P to Bergen via Hallingdal.

The corridors between Oslo and Stockholm were found to have a payback period within the study period, but this conclusion is dependent on the limitations of the rail network, since only the construction of the line to Karlstad, corresponding to 40% of the total corridor length, was considered in the study.
The delta connection H1:P between Oslo, Bergen and Stavanger has a payback period within the time scope of the model.
A sensitivity analysis was performed, and results demonstrate that the ranking of the various corridors remains the same for various model settings.

Assumptions for climate benefit
There are some deciding factors for the ranking of the corridors and in the assessment of high speed rail as a climate initiative:

Climate results are dictated by terrain and market

Tunnels have significantly higher climate gas emissions in the construction phase when compared to conventional open sections. The tunnel portion of each corridor varies between 22-66% of the total track length, and the tunnel portion is the controlling factor for climate impact in high speed rail.

Emissions from Norwegian high speed rail are expected to be higher than those of similar projects globally; this is a direct result of the total emissions being allocated to a smaller passenger base.

Climate savings are dependent on a transfer of the air transport market share to high speed rail.

Other land-based modes of transport have climate effects better or equal to those many of the high speed rail corridors investigated. The climate performance of high speed rail is therefore dependent on the passenger volume and market transfer from air transport.

Read the report and supporting material
The report that has just been released is for Phase 3, and are the final results for the high speed rail study. The assumptions used in Phase 3 can be found in the Phase 2 report. Links to both reports, written in English, can be found below. Results from other work packages can be found on the Norwegian National Rail Administraion (Jernbaneverket) website.

Note that the lines N1:Q and Ha2P are not included in the reports found below, although analysis of these lines have been performed. The final climate report will be released on February 3, 2012.

A message to our English speaking readers

As you probably understand our English pages are not being updated as frequently as we would wish. Feel free to use the Norwegian pages if you want to see more stuff, or just contact us. We will try to maintain a simplified version in English, with links to the Norwegian pages.

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Summer intern positions

Summer internships 2011
MiSA wishes to continue the successful tradition of summer internships for IndEcol students.

This year we are seeking three interns, each for a period of approximately 5 weeks. We have several interesting prospective projects, but final projects remain to be decided.

Students that complete their MSc fall project (fordypningemne) for MiSA are prioritized.

Interested candidates should send Resume, Front Letter, and Transcript of course results at IndEcol to johan@misa.no, by April 1^th the latest.

About the positions
The work will involve use of LCA skills and software, and presentation software such as SAP Crystal Dashboard Design. We expect the internships to result in tools to be used internally in MiSA and by our customers.

Students that complete their MSc fall project (fordypningsemne) for MiSA are prioritized, see the following two projects in the pdf below.
- Light-weight components in transport systems
- Livsløpsvurdering av infrastruktur for hurtigtog i Norge

We are looking for eager students that have completed the LCA course and want to apply their industrial ecology knowledge to an actual case. We may require Norwegian communication skills for some of the internships.

The project will run through minimum 5 weeks, starting in June and be finished before fall semester 2011. The total internship period may be extended beyond 5 weeks if external funding is found.

The salary is 180 NOK per hour before tax, at 37.5 effective work hours per week. In addition there is a 10.2 % vacation disbursement (feriepenger), as decreed by Norwegian labor laws.

[The total work remuneration for five weeks thereby is NOK 37 193 per candidate, before tax].

The candidates will have their workplace at MiSA, and the project work will be undertaken in cooperation with other MiSA employees.

If you have any questions regarding the internships, please contact me through mail or phone.

Best regards, Johan

Johan Pettersen, PhD
Manager and Senior Advisor

MiSA AS - Miljøsystemanalyse - Environmental Systems Analysis
Phone: +47 938 09 682 Email: johan@misa.no Web: www.misa.no
Address: MiSA AS, Beddingen 14, NO-7014 Trondheim, Norway

Skype: johan.pettersen

Carbon footprint of World Championships

The Oslo FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2011 seeks to document their climate performance, and hires MiSA to make carbon footprint calculations.

The project has already started and will be completed once all championship activities are finished.

Biogas in Norway

Main findings
In brief, the environmental assessment shows that:
- biogas production is a good environmental measure for the local farmers
- transport of raw and fermeted manure may give significant emissions and should be optimized
- the manure composition is improtant for the biogas yield, and thereby also the environmental potential. Manure from poultry and pig give more yield per volume compared to bovine manure sources
- all products from the bigas plant contribute positively to the overall environmental performance. The local market for products controsl the total performance; heat, electricity, CO₂for greenhouses, and fermeted manure.

Greenhouse gas emissions from manure handling
The project has investigated different models for the direct and indirect emissions from handling and use of manure. The conclusion is that it is difficult to find a consistent and comprehensive source for emission factors from this part of the biogas system. End results are calculated using factors from the Norwegian report to IPCC.

LCA for food

The study has been completed together wth the Norwegian Agricultural Economics Research Insittute (NILF), in a project funded by the Norwegian Research Council.

Slides are available here; Norwegian only.

MiSA evaluating high speed rail in Norway

New employee

Christine starts working for MiSA in September 2010. With her background in environmental engineering and industrial ecology she will be valuable resource to our LCA capacity.

The focus of Christine studies lay in the area of environmental systems analysis, including LCA, input-output and MFA (mass flow analysis). Christine also has experience performing environmental site assessments, including the collection and chemical analysis of water and soil samples and ecological monitoring.

She moved to Norway two years ago from Canada.

MiSA on the move

Following the establishment, MiSA's first offices have since January 2008 been at Univerity's (NTNU) incubator for new businesses, the NTNU Innovation Centre.

MiSA has since then outgrown it's first offices, and in August 2010 we moved to our new location, Beddingen 14 at Solsiden just outside the Trondheim city centre.

New PhD in MiSA

For more see our norwegian pages.

Klimakost in Denmark

The analysis is limited to those municipalities with an appropriate detail in their municipal accounts.

Contact in Niras is Kasper Dam Mikkelsen.

Klimakost for businesses

See here

Klimakost dokumentation

New employee in MiSA

Håvard has a background in industrial ecology. He will soon defend his PhD in environmental assessment of the construction sector.

Carbon Footprint of Nations

MiSA has been involved in producing the site, especially the construction of a calculator and other information material. We have also done quality check towards the programmer.

Find the site here.

MiSA-employees Johan Pettersen og Christian Solli approved as official EPD-verfication personnell

The approval has been done by næringslivets stiftelse for miljødeklarasjoner (association for environmental product declarations).

Klimakost in the KLIMA journal

Read more about it here (Norwegian only)

Klimakost municipality in regional newspaper Bergens Tidende

Check it out here

Klimakost municipality in local newspaper Adressa

Johan interviewed in Elmagasinet

Better safe than sorry
"Environmental systems analysis will become an important topic, says Johan Pettersen, CEO of MiSA, Norway's first company to offer this."

Read more at: Elmagasinet.no (in Norwegian)