Search

Browse

• Communities
• Authors
• Year
• Titles
• Subjects

My Space

• Login

Carbon footprint for the settlement of naval station, Crete

Papadimitriou Athanasios

Full record

---

Summary

In an era where the consequences of climate change are becoming increasingly visible and compelling, the carbon footprint is a crucial tool for assessing and limiting the environmental burden. This thesis, part of the new National Climate Law (Law 4936/2022), attempts for the first time a comprehensive and detailed assessment of the carbon footprint of the Crete Naval Base Settlement. This study, recognizing the challenges and limitations that accompany quantification at a local scale, a field that remains largely unexplored in Greece, constitutes an important step towards environmental and energy planning. Specifically, the work aims to record greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to assess the possibility of offsetting them by the extensive forest area within the boundaries of the settlement, a unique feature that gives special interest to the study, given the function of forests as natural carbon sinks. The results show that the final annual emitted amount of equivalent carbon dioxide amounts to 1211.09 t CO2-eq, of which only 182.9 tons (15.19 %) are offset through natural absorption by forest vegetation. The analysis of the distribution of emissions reveals that electricity is the dominant factor, contributing 804.53 t CO2-eq (66%), followed by heating oil with 336.06 t CO2-eq (28%), road transport with 53.30 t CO2-eq (4%), and solid (2.78 t CO2-eq) and liquid waste (7.20 t CO2-eq), representing around 1% of each category. These findings highlight the urgent need for radical changes in the settlement's energy model, as natural absorption by the forest is not sufficient to achieve climate neutrality. The main objective is to highlight practical strategies that can lead the Settlement to a more sustainable operation, reducing both its environmental footprint and its energy costs. The work offers a solid basis for a comprehensive energy and environmental design, with the ultimate goal of achieving significant benefits for the local economy and the operation of the Settlement with respect for the environment, contributing to the broader effort for a sustainable and resilient future.

Available Files

Services