Atif Ali

Purpose of Review: This review synthesizes key insights emerging from wood-based circular bioeconomy research published between 2020 and 2025, with a focus on clarifying geographic, discipline, technology, application, and circular economy integration trends. Findings: Analysis of reviewed literature ( N = 54) revealed that most wood-based circular bioeconomy publications originate at European institutions (83.4%), followed by institutions in China (11.1%). Research collaborations are widely interdisciplinary, with strong representation of forestry (11.6%), agricultural science (9.3%), and chemical engineering (8.1%) disciplines. Most studies focus on technologies that use wood-mixed biomass waste (26%) and forest residues (23%) as primary feedstocks, with 33% of these technologies currently at lab-scale. While 63% of studies adopt a technology or product-focused lens, 37% take a systems-view of circular bioeconomy and forest-wood supply chains, emphasizing stakeholder engagement and integration. Waste reduction is the primary stated environmental motivation for research (34%), followed by fossil fuel displacement (23%). Highlighted economic opportunities include new revenue streams for growth (32%) and cost savings (22%). Summary: Wood-based circular bioeconomy has been advancing largely via research in biorefineries and co-production technologies, particularly lignin valorization, aromatic compound recovery, and end-of-life biomass waste valorization. Interdisciplinary collaboration and system-based approaches are improving the integration of bioeconomy with well-established circular economic methods. However, gaps remain: few studies address end-of-life (EOL) flows, chemically modified wood products, or circular reintegration of bio-based materials. Expanding research on underexplored flows and life cycle stages is essential to realize a fully circular wood-based bioeconomy.

New York State’s (NYS) Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) requires that 100% of the state’s electricity supply be greenhouse gas emissions-free by 2040 and that 6000 megawatts (MW) of solar energy must be installed in NYS by 2025. This study aims to evaluate the environmental impact of electricity generation from New York State distributed solar photovoltaic systems. This cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment (LCA) follows the International Standardization Organization (ISO) framework for LCA, including the goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment, and interpretation. The study is based on operational data from 120 existing solar installations. Global Warming Potential varies substantially by site, with the minimum and maximum impact values varying from 25.2 to 88.5 gCO_2eq/kWh, and with a mean of 45.6 gCO_2eq/kWh. Regression analysis shows this range is attributable to differences in site location, capacity factor, and system design (i.e., monocrystalline and polycrystalline panels, area power ratio). Based on absolute percentage, the inclusion of the end-of-life process reduces the total environmental impact from 2% in Ozone Depletion to 16% in Acidification, indicating a positive impact of engaging in end-of-life management across all categories. This analysis can help policymakers understand the implications of the solar PV installation mandate.