Ecolabel | EPFL Graph Search

Ecolabels (also "Eco-Labels") and Green Stickers are labeling systems for food and consumer products. The use of ecolabels is voluntary, whereas green stickers are mandated by law; for example, in North America major appliances and automobiles use Energy Star. They are a form of sustainability measurement directed at consumers, intended to make it easy to take environmental concerns into account when shopping. Some labels quantify pollution or energy consumption by way of index scores or units of measurement, while others assert compliance with a set of practices or minimum requirements for sustainability or reduction of harm to the environment. Many ecolabels are focused on minimising the negative ecological impacts of primary production or resource extraction in a given sector or commodity through a set of good practices that are captured in a sustainability standard. Through a verification process, usually referred to as "certification", a farm, forest, fishery, or mine can show th

Towards Solar Decathlon: Concepts for a Sustainable Urban Water Management in a new eco-district

Gianluca Antonio Paglia

Water is rarely considered to be a crucial aspect in sustainable housing. In fact, water sustainability in eco-districts and in ecological architecture is frequently limited to recycling and reuse solutions. Why less water? What could explain the choice of an installation, of a specific strategy or of a criterion trying to decrease water needs? Terms as ecological footprint or sustainability are becoming more and more used, however, how can sustainability be measured? What does sustainable water mean? What are the parameters that quantify the ecological footprint of a water management system? Within this project, some possible concepts of optimization and valorization of sustainable urban water system have been defined and explored. Numerous studies about water management, water distribution, sanitary technologies, recycling, etc. have already been done. Nevertheless, it is less common to identify the reasons that are able to justify a reduced consumption of water. Eco-district labels propose several solutions for sustainable water, however they are limited by scale or simply focused on one stage of the water cycle. The aim of this project is then to consider water from a larger point of view: through a Life Cycle Analysis approach, needs and properties of different urban water management systems are compared and evaluated. The scale considered for such reflections is effectively a central parameter; in this case, hypothesis will be applied to collective habitations inserted in a district and part of a specific urban context: the city of Fribourg. The urban environment has particular features in relation to surrounding rural areas: energy exchanges, hydrology characteristics and limited ecosystems. The relationship between the use of natural resources and urban development is becoming more and more important; the purpose of this thesis is then to define a methodology able to suggest a sustainable use of water through environmental, political and economic issues. A real urban case study with its current water management system defines what has to be analyzed and allows evaluating the limits and the possible enhancements of such system. Thus, in order to have an idea about the potential of sustainable water management solutions, an ambitious analysis of energy related to water uses and disposals is created and is used to show the reasons for change in a real model as the city of Fribourg. A comparison between two extreme scenarios of Fribourg’s selected zones is finally developed, discussed and implied in the conclusions through specific actions and facts. The results show that a high potential of improvements exist. Using them to elaborate new strategies in collaboration with the several stakeholders contacted may contribute to achieve many of today’s objectives for a sustainable urban water management. The best scenario, chosen with a new concept of eco-label, summarizes and concludes the analysis.

2015

Green Hydropower: The contribution of aquatic science research to the promotion of sustainable electricity

Bernhard Wehrli, Alfred Johny Wüest

Hydropower use is responsible for a wide range of environmental disturbances to river systems. Over the past decades, aquatic science research has been successful in identifying a considerable number of relationships that exist between plant operation and ecosystem quality. This increase in scientific knowledge was, however, not matched by a corresponding reduction in environmental impacts stemming from hydropower. In the present paper, we show how aquatic science projects may be defined and implemented to better link scientific knowledge with the resolution of environmental problems. We base our analysis on a major aquatic science research project in which an eco-label for "sustainable hydropower" (Green Hydropower) was developed for Switzerland. We first assess the state of aquatic science research on alpine river systems. The Swiss history of hydropower shows that the limited adoption of this knowledge was due to a severe coordination and action problem. The Green Hydropower project aimed at establishing an environmental product label for hydropower plant operation, which should help overcome these problems. It had to deal with two major challenges: the integration of widely differing knowledge stocks and the management of a network of diverse stakeholders operating in a conflict-laden political environment. By carefully dealing with these two problem areas, the project was finally able to define a scientifically-based and broadly-accepted standard for Green Hydropower operation. We conclude by discussing lessons for the improvement of problem-oriented aquatic science research, in general.

Springer Basel Ag2003

Towards Solar Decathlon: Concepts for a Sustainable Urban Water Management in a new eco-district

Gianluca Antonio Paglia

2015