PRINS assumes the responsibility of having a positive impact on local, regional and national development, carrying out knowledge transfer actions that can mobilise the economy of its closest environment, facilitating progress towards a more just, balanced, inclusive and sustainable society. The projects in which we are working with different companies and organizations are described below.
1. LIFE CYCLE ANALYSIS TO OBTAIN THE EPD LINKED TO THE ACTIVITY DEVELOPED BY BALEÀRIA EUROLINEAS MARÍTIMAS S.A. AT THE TERMINAL OF THE VALENCIA PORT
The main objective pursued by the Company is to know the best way to maximize its eco-efficiency by reducing the environmental impacts incurred in its activities as a port terminal for the transport of people and goods, while increasing the economic benefit. For this reason, the quantification of environmental impacts through the LCA methodology according to ISO 14040 is commissioned. For that purpose, the volume and importance of the potential impacts are assessed, measuring in detail the volume of impact in different categories, being necessary to classify the different environmental interventions, characterize the total effect of the system on each category of impact (climate change , depletion of stratospheric ozone, acid rain, eutrophication, toxicity, resource depletion, etc.), normalize and value in order to prioritize actions that reduce the most problematic impacts.
These actions will allow to evaluate the terminal’s port operations from an environmental and sustainable perspective, with the ultimate goal of identifying the main causes and generating scenarios to begin to reduce impacts, thus increasing the eco-efficiency of the company.
Likewise, once the LCA has been completed following the guidelines of the PCR PORT OPERATION SERVICES 2018: 06 VERSION 1.02 and the critical review carried out by external experts has been passed, the process will be carried out to request the EDP leading to obtaining the type III ecolabel of the activity. Once the type III ecolabel has been obtained, Balearia will be a pioneer and leader in environmental communication in its sector.
2.ECOPORT III: STUDY AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE LEVELS OF ECO-EFFICIENCY OF VALENCIAPORT AND STRATEGIC DEFINITION OF THE ROADMAP FOR ITS IMPROVEMENT.
To measure resource efficiency, the Data Enveloping Analysis (DEA) technique will be applied to a representative number of Valenciaport companies. The variables to be considered will be those previously identified in the strategic plan carried out by PRINS researchers in environmental and energy matters for the Port Authority of Valencia (APV) in 2019.
The DEA is the most widely used non-parametric technique when measuring the efficiency of certain functional units (companies). This technique will make it possible to measure the efficiency of energy and environmental performance in port companies, so that they can be ordered and hierarchized according to their eco-efficiency. Once the key energy and environmental variables in the performance of port productivity have been defined and divided into fundamental inputs and outputs of the system, it will be possible to obtain a ranking with the most eco-efficient companies, as well as to define to what extent they must improve their inputs and outputs to optimize their current results.
Making this analysis will provide a very clear diagnosis of the current situation of port companies, which will provide many elements of judgment when proposing the strategy to promote the fulfilment of the institutional mission of the PAV in this matter.
3.UPDATE OF GHG INVENTORY and CARBON FOOTPRINT OF THE PORT OF VALENCIA
PRINS researchers calculate the carbon footprint of the Port Authority of Valencia for 2017, 2018 and 2019 according to ISO 14064, as it has been doing since 2008. This work is verified by a certification body, being the first port in the world to have its footprint verified including Scope I: direct emissions, Scope II: indirect emissions and Scope III: including all indirect emissions that occur in the value chain, both from terminals and concessionaires and those derived from the transport of goods and the stay of ships in port. The Port Authority, through the promotion of energy efficiency and the establishment of decarbonization policies, has achieved a 28.5% reduction of its carbon footprint, going from 3.12 kgCO2/t in 2008 to 2.23 kgCO2/t in 2019, despite having increased by 42% the goods moved in the port area of Valencia.
4.TIRES OUT OF USE (TOU): TECH MINING, EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY (EPR) AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY
The massive evaluation of research, patents and recent technologies related to the treatment of used tires allows knowing new solutions and alternatives to improve and expand the current offer of valuation of rubber by-products. This bibliometric analysis or Data Mining comprises a set of techniques and technologies that allow to explore large databases, automatically or semi-automatically, with the aim of finding what is being done, where, by whom, how and why within a certain sector at an international level. Thus, the data collected for the treatment of used tires, once transformed and properly analysed, becomes the means to reach conclusions and relevant information so that the TNU company can develop improvements and innovative solutions in its processes. Specifically, Tech Mining will be used, which focuses on the analysis of new technologies that could be useful in revaluation processes by analysing thousands of scientific articles and patents.
After this analysis, the current situation of research and application technology in the valorisation of by-products linked to the used tire will be better known, as well as basic information in order to implement possible open innovation models, and to define peripheral innovation models collaborating with the rest of the relevant agents in the value chain. Likewise, the work includes a brief state of the art of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and how to link it to the Circular Economy (CE) following the indications of the EU DIRECTIVE 2018/851 and RD 731/2020 of MITECO.
5.ADVICE AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ENERGY, ENVIRONMENTAL, QUALITY AND GHG MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS, ACCORDING TO ISO 50000, ISO 14000, ISO 9000 AND ISO 14064.
PRINS researchers have been conducting internal audits, providing advice, technical assistance and implementing PMO of environmental energy improvement projects to logistics-port companies since 2008. Currently, the implementation, maintenance and improvement of management systems and legal compliance of RD56/2016 and on agreements of good environmental practices of RD 2/2011 is being carried out. Below are some of the companies that use these services.