Decision-making process environmental impact assessment

An environmental site characterization comprises the set of investigations which form the basis for a solid knowledge of the site. This is turn constitutes the necessary foundation for the decision-making process leading to a feasible and sustainable environmental rehabilitation of the site. The results of such work must include a characterization of the site subsurface, and an assessment of the presence and dynamics of any contamination in order to define the best approach for impact containment and site remediation. 

Abstract Public approval of an environmental analysis and impact assessment project is usually coupled with different conditions that the project is required to meet. Environmental impact assessment (EIA) constitutes an important basis for decisions regarding possible imposition of conditions. The main focns of the present chapter is to clarify the roles that EIAs can have in snch decision-making processes. 

Life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) adds two elements to an environmental LCA social and economic factors. The term refers to "the evaluation of all environmental, social and economic negative impacts and benefits in decision-making processes towards more sustainable products throughout their life cycle" [93]. 

Although the methodology of assessment methods can be criticized, it is essential that we have accurate tools at our disposal in order to make the correct decisions regarding the appropriate materials/processes to use. An important aspect of making any determination of the environmental impact of a process, or as a consequence of the use of a specific material, is the determination of where the boundaries of the analysis should lie. A simple diagram of the principle elements of an environmental impact analysis is shown in Figure 9.1. 

It is important to note that the LCA is a tool and cannot provide an all-encompassing assessment. One of the reasons is that industrial processes are interconnected globally, so that complete consideration of all these interdependencies is practically impossible. Also, the results of an LCA are approximations and simplifications of cumulative burdens to the environment and of resources used. Therefore, the LCA process does not directly measure actual environmental impact, predict effects, or represent causal linkages with specific effects. As a result, to meet the needs of the study users, it may be necessary to supplement the LCA with other tools or methods to provide a basis for decision making. These tools include risk assessment, site-specific environmental assessment, etc. As a part of the scoping process, it is useful to identify where and how these other tools will be used to augment the findings of the LCA [5]. 

Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is an additional assessment approach for making environmental decisions. LCA can be defined as an inventory of all the steps in the development, manufacture, use, and disposal of a product or a commodity with a determination of the environmental consequences (Todd and Curan 1999). The purpose of an LCA is to provide information to a decision maker so that choices can be made in the design of a manufacturing process to minimize environmental impacts or risks. 

Finally, the carbon footprint of a product or a process can only rarely reflect all the important environmental aspects of a product or process choice. Therefore, other environmental impact categories or even technical, social and economic assessments are necessary complements. The carbon footprint has often been the only environmental indicator assessed, due to lack of data or well-developed impact assessment methodology for other impacts, or sometimes because of ignorance of the potential risks constituted by the other environmental aspects. The choice of making a carbon footprint assessment or not and how to complement it with other evaluations must be guided by the decision at hand. 

Finally, a developing paradigm for making environmental decisions is life cycle assessment (LCA). This technique examines the impacts of the entire manufacturing, use and disposal cycle of a material or product. Similar to EcoRA, LCA allows the incorporation of toxicological data into the decisionmaking process. 

Chemists perform many different kinds of research. Some design new fuels and more efficient ways to use them. Researchers in the medical field develop new treatments for diabetes, genetic defects, cancer, AIDS, and other diseases. Researchers in the environmental field study the ways in which human development impacts the environment and develop processes that help reduce environmental degradation. For the researcher in the laboratory, the physician in the dialysis unit, the environmental chemist, or the agricultural scientist, chemistry plays a central role in understanding problems, assessing possible solutions, and making important decisions. 

---