Environmental impacts definition

Life cycle assessment is defined by ISO 14040 as compilation and evalu ation of inputs, outputs and the potential environmental impacts of a product system throughout its life cycle. The ISO standards regulate the procedural aspects of LCA. They do not, however, provide all the information required for carrying out an LCA study. The main phases of LCA are goal and scope definition, inventory, impact assessment, and interpretation. The various applications of LCA are not regulated by the standard (Fig. 15.1). 

Simply put, paper is manufactured by applying a watery suspension of cellulose fibers to a screen that allows the water to drain and leaves the fibrous particles behind in a web. Most modem paper products contain nonfibrous additives, but otherwise they fall within this general definition. Only a few paper products for specialized uses are created without the use of water, using dry forming techniques. The production of pulp is the major source of environmental impacts from the pulp and paper industry. 

The inventory results should be presented in clear form, how much and what substances from the environment enter the system and how much get out. These results serve for subsequent life cycle impact assessment [48], The aim of the life cycle impact assessment is to measurably compare the environmental impacts of product systems and to compare their severity with new quantifiable variables identified as impact category. The impact categories are areas of specific environmental problems such as global warming, climate changes, acidification, eutrophication, ecotoxicity and others. Already in the phase of definition of the LCA study scope, it is necessary to describe what impact category will be applied and which of their environmental mechanisms will serve as a basis for impact assessment [46],... 

Often contrasted in conceptual terms, EIA and RA have a common ultimate goal— the rational reform of policy-making (Andrews 1990). Both assessment tools are intended to provide reasoned predictions of possible consequences of planned decisions to facilitate wiser choices among the alternatives. To link risk assessment and impact assessment paradigms one can suggest a definition of environmental impact as any change in the level of risk undergone by receptors of concern that are reasonably attributable to a proposed project (Demidova, 2002). 

The toxicity of this third allotropic form of carbon is an aspect related to application in medicine and biology, while the concern about the environmental impact is due to the industrial production of fullerenes. Many studies are dedicated to both aspects and, so far, it is not possible to have a definitive answer although the current findings allow some optimistic vision. 

Conceptual design studies for WIPP have been completed and architect engineering definition is now underway. A DOE Preliminary Environmental Impact Statement will be released by January, 1979. Present schedules call for construction to start in 1981 and for completion in 1985. First radioactive waste shipments could be accomodated in the spring of 1986. 

There is no general and widely accepted definition of EIA and although many organisations may share common objectives, the concepts and scope of an EIA may vary considerably. The results of an EIA are assembled into a document known as an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) which contains a discussion of beneficial and adverse... 

At an urban scale, in some cases (Albanese et al., 2007 Cicchella et al., in press Lima et al., 2007), the use of this technique has been unsuitable due to both the small dimensions of the contaminated zones, characterised by a weak environmental impact on the surroundings, and the uniformity of the underlying geology along the whole urban area. Application of the C—A method to the MIDW interpolated grids and a careful observation of concentration intervals applied to the interpolated surfaces have led to a satisfactory definition of both background/baseline and anomalous values in most cases. 

The short summary of the life-cycle method preceding the actual analyses is necessary, because life-cycle analysis is not a standard calculation. In the literature, one finds various definitions ranging from restricted net energy analyses over environmental impact studies to the full consideration of both environmental and social impacts. It is the latter methodology, more fully described in Sorensen (2004a), which will be employed here. 

In goal definition, the scope and purpose of the LCA is defined. The functional unit and system boundaries are also established. The functional unit is the reference point to which environmental impacts are attributed. The choice of functional unit depends on the application of the LCA. For a process it could be a tonne of product or feedstock, or a tonne of impurity removed. For a commodity product the functional unit could be a tonne of product, but for specialty chemicals and most consumer products performance properties are more important and the choice can become complex. For example, performance of a paint would be related to its surface coverage and durability hence a possible functional unit for the paint might be the quantity required to cover a square meter of surface over a time span of 20 years. 

An important early step is the definition of system boundaries within which impacts are accounted for. A good example of the issues in system boundary definition is the case of utility systems. The process plant in Figure 6 may consume electricity, but this consumption implies impacts at the power station through fuel combustion and water use. For a coal-fired power station, this, in turn, implies impacts at the coal mine. If the plant consumes natural gas for heating, impacts in exploration, extraction, treatment, and compression of the natural gas are implied. The environmental impacts incurred in such utility systems have... 

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