Environmental cost

Unwanted byproducts usually cannot be converted back to useful products or raw materials. The reaction to unwanted byproducts creates both raw materials costs due to the raw materials which are wasted in their formation and environmental costs for their disposal. Thus maximum selectivity is wanted for the chosen reactor conversion. The objectives at this stage can be summarized as follows ... 

The costs of building and maintaining a bromine plant are high because of the corrosiveness of brine solutions which contain chlorine and bromine and require special materials of constmction. The principal operating expenses are for pumping, steam, environmental costs, energy, and chlorine. The plants are very capital intensive. 

Anthraquinone dyes have been produced for many decades and have covered a wide range of dye classes. In spite of the complexity of production and relatively high costs, they have played an important role in the areas where excellent properties ate requited, because they have excellent lightfastness and leveling properties with brUhant shades that ate not attainable with other chtomophotes. However, recent increases in environmental costs have become a serious problem, and future prospects for the anthraquinone dye industry ate not optimistic. Some traditional manufacturers have stopped the production of a certain dye class or dye intermediates that were especially burdened by environmental costs, eg, vat dyes and their intermediates derived from anthraquinone-l-sulfonic acid and 1,5-disulfonic acid. However, several manufacturers have succeeded in process improvement and continue production, even expanding their capacity. In the forthcoming century the woddwide framework of production will change drastically. 

Traditional co.sting procedure (TCP). This accounting procedure only takes into account capital and operating (including environmental) costs. 

Environmental Cost Accounting Project cost estimating principles Return on investment calculations Project cost estimating principles... 

In considering the economics of process alternatives, it is important to think about the total life cycle costs. There is an increasing interest in this concept in the environmental area, with a recognition of the need to incorporate waste treatment, waste disposal, regulatory compliance, potential liability for environmental damage, and other long term environmental costs into project economic evaluation. Similarly, we must consider life cycle safety costs. Some examples of factors which should be considered include ... 

A typical CBA involves a description of the expected decrease in emissions and a model of the impact pathways, such as an estimation of the average damage per emission unit. It involves a valuation of damage units such as loss of 1 kg crop, one person admission to hospital due to respiratory infections, etc. As an example, a part of a result table from a study in determining external environmental costs fot the production of electricity from coaU is shown in Table 15.5. 

Replacement of organic solvents by water may be done for environmental, cost e.g. reduction in raw materials and VOC containment costs) or technical reasons. In the flavour and fragrance industry, where the presence of even trace amounts of volatile impurities can be detected by the expert nose , significant process costs are entailed in ensuring complete removal of solvent. If reactions can be carried out in water then these additional costs can be saved. As an example geraniol can be isomerized to the important fragrance intermediates a-terpinol and linalol in water at 220 °C (Scheme 5.9). 

Improve the durability of the product so that the financial and environmental costs of replacement and disposal are reduced. 

These issues of scarcity, high environmental costs and sustainable use will ultimately be reflected in the market price of resources. It is therefore economically sensible to plan for significantly higher costs for some of these materials in the future. Trying to avoid the use of scarce, damaging or depleting resources therefore brings both environmental and financial benefits. 

Environmental Cost Handling Options and Solutions (ECHOS), RS Means Environmental Remediation Cost Data—Unit Price, 8th Annual Edition, 2002. 

For abiotic stock resources, the resource value is set as equal to the production and environmental cost for a sustainable alternative. For fossil oil, gas and coal, these alternatives are rapeseed oil, biogas and charcoal, respectively. For metal (metal ores), the production and environmental costs to upgrade low-quality ores (sustainable supplies), such as silicate minerals, to a quality similar to present day ores, using a bioenergy-driven process (near-sustainable process), is used as the resource value. 

Consequently, the treated sludge presented similar levels of NP and NPl,2EO per gram of dry weight as sludge before treatment. Nevertheless, before validating the use of such advanced processes, the assessment of their economic and environmental cost is still needed [62]. 

Economic analysis/valuation of specific functions or services provided by the natural system (i.e. the ecosystem) and of the (societal) costs and benefits of the measures proposed to restore these services, contributes to the transparency of the decisions. Concerning the system, a better definition of water services is needed in order to evaluate recovery costs of water uses and environmental costs. The economic analysis should also include a valuation of water and ecosystem services. For instance, the delivery of clean water by the ecosystem (e.g. through its filtering capacity or capacity to degrade contaminants) is one of these services. 

Hill J (2007) Environmental costs and benefits of transportation biofuel production from food- and I i gnocc11 u I osc-based energy crops A review. Agron Sustain Dev 27 1-12. doi 10.1051/ agro 2007006... 

One method for understanding the economic and environmental costs and benefits associated with the transition to a hydrogen economy is through the use of scenarios. Scenarios are one way of providing a set of quantitative inputs for use in a computer model or analysis that can be used to calculate the potential impacts associated with these assumptions. 

The awareness that our human culture requires sustainable use of the earth s resources and its biosphere has become generally accepted in those societies that are in a relatively wealthy economic position. It also provides the intuitive justification for many that the use of renewable resources is a necessity. However, several economists (see Jaccard [1], Smil [4], Lomborg [5]) caution that the introduction or transition to renewable resources will also have economic as well as environmental costs, that sometimes reverse the preference for particular raw materials or technologies that at first sight seem to be the best. 

Alternatively, one can react C02 with reactive rock minerals to form carbonates. There appear to be large amounts of Ca- or Mg-containing materials available, be it at the environmental cost of huge mining operations. 

Assessing the environmental costs of garden building materials and practices is a comparatively new area, and the situation is constantly changing as companies set about improving their environmental policies. 

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