Current emission and consumption levels

Fugitive emissions which are included in the total VCM to air emissions in this section ate calculated according to the reference methods from ECVM  

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Chapter 3 provides data and information concerning current emission and consumption levels, reflecting the situation in existing installations at the time of writing. 

The current emission and consumption levels as provided by APME show a statistic approach, e g. to set the BAT level at the performance of the top 25 or 50 % of installations. Where there was a technical justification for this approach, it was agreed by the TWG. 

On the basis of this assessment, techniques, and as far as possible emission and consumption levels associated with the use of BAT, are presented in this chapter that are considered to be appropriate to the sector as a whole and in many cases reflect the current performance of some installations within the sector. Where emission or consumption levels associated with best available techniques are presented, this is to be understood as meaning that those levels represent the environmental performance that could be anticipated as a result of the application, in this sector, of the techniques described, bearing in mind the balance of costs and advantages inherent withm the definition of BAT. However, they are neither emission nor consumption limit values and should not be understood as such. In some cases it may be technically possible to achieve better emission or consumption levels but due to the costs involved or cross-media considerations, they are not considered to be appropriate as BAT for the sector as a whole. However, such levels may be considered to be justified in more specific cases where there are special driving forces. 

All emission and consumption data show the ranges of current levels. 

The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer requires each signatory nation to reduce its production and consumption of the CFCs 11, 12, 113, 114 and 115 to 80% of their 1986 levels by 1993 and to 50% by 1998. Figure 8 shows that production levels of the first three of these has indeed fallen dramatically since 1988, according to data reported in Reference 109 by the major industrial producers. However, the Montreal measures will have little effect on the current levels of stratospheric CFCs, which would still continue to rise for many years, as illustrated by Figure 9 for the example of CFC-12. It would be necessary to impose an 85% reduction in order to stabilize atmospheric concentrations at their 1989 level110. Even with a total cessation of CFC emission atmospheric concentrations will not be restored to their pre-1960 levels until well... 

At current oil crop production levels and fuel consumption rates, biodiesel is unlikely to replace more than a very small portion of total diesel fuel consumed globally (1). However, biodiesel has many potential niche markets where its low toxicity and improved emissions can provide value that outweighs the added costs of using this fuel. Toxicity and biodegradability tests have determined that biodiesel is a... 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has compiled emission factors for a variety of sources and activity levels (such as production or consumption), reporting the results since 1972 in AP-42 Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors, for which supplements are issued regularly. Emission factors currently in use are developed from only a... 

Details of the lyocell production process have been described earlier. This section will focus on the environmental attributes of the technology. Overall, current lyocell factories are designed and operated to achieve world-class low levels of emissions and minimise energy consumption. 

Computer projections of atmospheric CC2 concentration for the next 200 years predict escalating increases in C02 concentration. Only about half the C02 released by humans is absorbed by Earth s natural systems. The other half increases the C02 concentration in the atmosphere by about 1.5 ppmv per year. Two conclusions can be drawn from the these facts. First, even if C02 emissions were reduced to the amount emitted in 1990 and held constant at that level, the concentration of CO, in the atmosphere would continue to increase at about 1.5 ppmv per year for the next century. Second, to maintain C02 at its current concentration of 360 ppmv, we would have to reduce fossil fuel consumption by about 50% immediately. 

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