Environmental LCA and carbon footprint of cauliflower as produced in Southeast Spain

  1. Rasines Elena, Laura 1
  2. San Miguel Alfaro, Guillermo
  3. Molina García, Ángel 1
  4. Artés Hernández, Francisco de Asís 1
  5. Hontoria Hernández, Eloy 1
  1. 1 Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena
    info

    Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena

    Cartagena, España

    ROR https://ror.org/02k5kx966

Actas:
17th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology: Atenas, del 1 al 4 de septiembre de 2021

Año de publicación: 2021

Tipo: Aportación congreso

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Resumen

Southern Spain has an optimal climate for growing fruits and vegetables. Over 39,534 ha are currently dedicated to the production of cauliflower and broccoli in Spain, 33% of which correspond to the Region of Murcia. This type of intensive agriculture causes environmental impacts which must be quantified and minimized as much as possible. This study details the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of cauliflower production with a cradle-to-farm-gate approach using precise and updated primary data from local producers. Foreground inventory data was collected for the nursery and on-field stages, including energy use, consumption, application and diffusion of fertilizers and pesticides, machinery and transport to the packaging center. Ecoinvent v3.6 datasets were adapted to the characteristics of the system for background inventory and the EF 3.0 method was used for evaluation. The carbon footprint of 1 kg of cauliflower was estimated at 91.2 g CO2eq.