sustainability
Article Practitioners’ Perceptions of Co-Product Allocation Methods in Biorefinery Development—A Case Study of the Austrian Pulp and Paper Industry Julia Wenger 1 , Stefan Pichler 1 , Annukka Näyhä 2,3 and Tobias Stern 1, *
1 Institute of Systems Sciences, Innovation and Sustainability Research, University of Graz, Merangasse 18/I, 8010 Graz, Austria; julia.wenger@uni-graz.at (J.W.); stefan.pichler@denkstatt.at (S.P.) 2 School of Business and Economics, University of Jyväskylä, 40014 Jyväskylä, Finland; annukka.nayha@jyu.fi 3 School of Resource Wisdom, University of Jyväskylä, 40014 Jyväskylä, Finland * Correspondence: tobias.stern@uni-graz.at Abstract: The utilization of coproducts is a strategy that can be applied to increase the economic and environmental performance of industrial processes and thus reach an objective targeted in several environmental policies. In multi-output production processes, allocation needs to be performed to assess the products’ environmental and economic performance. It is crucial to choose an ade- quate allocation method, because this choice has been shown to strongly influence overall outcomes. Consequently, rash choices can lead to poor decision-making. Various ways to apply and combine allocation methods can be found in the academic literature, but it is often difficult to find sufficient guidance on how to choose an allocation method for a specific context. This study explores practi- tioners’ perceptions of the cost and environmental impact allocation methods used in biorefinery development (lignin, fiber fines) by applying the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Results indicate that professional background represents a major factor influencing individual preferences and, thus, the selection of specific allocation methods. Policy makers should be aware that practitioners with different professional backgrounds have varying preferences for different allocation methods and that this influences the overall assessments. These factors, in turn, affect the interpretation of results, further decision-making and, ultimately, the realization of environmentally sound and economi- cally viable biorefinery projects. This issue deserves more attention in biorefineries, but also in other multi-output production processes. The findings indicate a need to consider multidisciplinary, diverse views and knowledge when conducting such assessments and to display the underlying approaches transparently. Keywords: allocation of costs and environmental impacts; corporate environmental management; wood biorefineries; stakeholder perception; analytic hierarchy process (AHP); multicriteria decision-making 1. Introduction Biorefineries are viewed as being an important part of circular bioeconomy devel- opment, having the potential to contribute to the more sustainable use of environmental resources and, overall, to sustainability transition [1–3]. Several biorefinery definitions, approaches and developments exist [4], whereby the key aims are to be competitive in the market and replace fossil based products at the same time. In biorefineries, several products similar to the portfolios of crude oil refineries can be manufactured, but instead of fossil based oil, biorefineries utilize renewable resources [5]. The biorefinery concept includes various technologies that can separate such biomass resources (e.g., wood) into their building blocks (e.g., carbohydrates, lignin) [5]. These components can be further converted into various biofuels, chemicals, materials, feed and food, all of which have
Citation: Wenger, J.; Pichler, S.; Näyhä, A.; Stern, T. Practitioners’ Perceptions of Co-Product Allocation Methods in Biorefinery Development—A Case Study of the Austrian Pulp and Paper Industry. Sustainability 2022 , 14 , 2619. https:// doi.org/10.3390/su14052619
Academic Editor: Marzena Smol
Received: 15 January 2022 Accepted: 21 February 2022 Published: 24 February 2022
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Sustainability 2022 , 14 , 2619. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052619
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability
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