A regional approach to determine economic, environmental and social impacts of different sugarcane production systems in Brazil

Author(s):Show less -

Cardoso, T. F. ^[1] ; Watanabe, M. D. B. ^[1] ; Souza, A. ^[1] ; Chagas, M. F. ^{[1, 2]} ; Cavalett, O. ^[1] ; Morais, E. R. ^[1] ; Nogueira, L. A. H. ^[3] ; Leal, M. R. L. V. ^[1] ; Braunbeck, O. A. ^[4] ; Cortez, L. A. B. ^[4] ; Bonomi, A. ^{[1, 2]}

Affiliation

^[1] CNPEM, Lab Nacl Ciencia & Tecnol Bioetanol CTB, BR-13083970 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Estadual Campinas, UNICAMP, FEQ, Av Albert Einstein 500, BR-13083852 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Fed Itajuba UNIFEI, IRN, Campus Univ Pinheirinho, BR-37500050 Itajuba, MG - Brazil

^[4] Univ Estadual Campinas, UNICAMP, Fac Engn Agr FEAGRI, Av Candido Rondon 501, BR-13083875 Campinas, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BIOMASS & BIOENERGY; v. 120, p. 9-20, JAN 2019.
• Web of Science Citations: 3

Abstract

Brazilian sugarcane sector plays a very important role in the economy of the country, considering sugar, ethanol and bioelectricity production. Over the last decade, a variety of economic, social and environmental elements have pushed the sugarcane sector to increasing adoption of mechanically-based agricultural operations, especially in Center-South region of Brazil. Manual and mechanized sugarcane harvesting technologies were evaluated (with and without burning), as well as straw recovery, in three representative sugarcane production regions in Brazil: Sao Paulo state, the largest national producer, Northeast, a traditional region of sugarcane production, and Center-West region, sugarcane expansion area. Sugarcane production systems were compared using metrics from Engineering Economics, Life Cycle Assessment, and Social Life Cycle Assessment. The mechanized harvesting presented lower production costs in the Sao Paulo and Center-West regions, whereas manual harvesting had lowest cost in the Northeast region. When considering the verticalized production system (agricultural and industrial phases), mechanized with straw recovery - operating during both season and off-season periods - presented the best techno-economic performances when compared to the other scenarios in all the regions. Manual harvesting presented higher job creation while mechanized sugarcane systems show better working conditions and workers with higher average income, especially in the agricultural phase. Considering environmental impacts, scenarios with mechanized harvesting without burning and straw recovery presented the best comparative balance of environmental impacts. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/00282-3 - Bioenergy contribution of Latin America, Caribbean and Africa to the GSB project - LACAF-Cane I
• Grantee: Luis Augusto Barbosa Cortez
• Support Opportunities: Program for Research on Bioenergy (BIOEN) - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 12/15359-1 - Economic Input-Output Life Cycle Assessment as a tool for Virtual Sugarcane Biorefinery
• Grantee: Marcos Djun Barbosa Watanabe
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral