Estimating Carbon Emissions of Northeast Brazil Railway System

Abstract

This article addresses the developing of a framework to obtain specific GHG emissions for the railway system and proposes mitigation strategies. To achieve this purpose, a comprehensive life cycle assessment (LCA) method was employed with input data from various sources to analyze the contribution of energy consumption and the emissions of the railway system. This paper included gathering data from an infrastructure operation and maintenance for detailed GHG emissions impact. This study also presents a comparative analysis of the GHG emissions in different urban railway transportation systems in Northeast Brazil, providing valuable contextual insights. As a result of the combination of total GHG emissions analysis from the states of the Northeast Brazil railway system, a total of 11,996.11 metric tons of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e) was estimated. The main line traction was a prominent source of the greenhouse gas footprint, especially for the diesel traction systems at Paraiba. The proposed framework shows that significant environmental benefits can be realized with proper decision-making to increase the number of passengers–kilometer transported by rail.