Quantifying Carbon Footprint at Agroindustrial Training Center La Angostura

Abstract

The growing international concern about the adverse consequences of climate change, has motivated various organizations and institutions to take steps to fully understand their dynamics of greenhouse gases (GHGs). (Schneider & Samaniego, 2010. 100, 5). One of the internationally recognized indicators to understand the dynamics of GHG is carbon footprint obtained by quantifying GHG emissions caused by the activities of an individual, organization or institution, over a period of time. This unit is expressed in tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2-eq,) where the unit tons of CO2 reflects the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere. The quantification of tons of CO2-eq at Agroindustrial Training Center La Angostura (CEFA) was performed by identifying study areas and process maps; variables were established; consumption or production according to the analyzed variables were quantified; and the equivalent in CO2-eq units was estimated. Twenty four production units as study areas were identified - divided into 4 productive areas of the Center: agricultural area, livestock area, marketing area and environmental area. Based on the different process maps and the methodology, the four identified variables were: energy consumption, water consumption, fuel consumption and generation of solid waste. With these variables in mind, the consolidated consumption or production established that GHG emissions in the Training Center are 42,827.34 tons of CO2-eq approached over a period of one year, between 01/03/2015 and 01/03/2016. Knowing the impact of the activities of the CEFA Organization regarding the amount of GHG in the production units remarks on the critical points to be resolved in a clear and efficient manner.