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Human Toxicity Potentials for Life Cycle Assesment and Toxics Release Inventory Risk Screening
Abstract
The human toxicity potential (HTP), a calculated index that reflects the potential harm of a unit of chemical released into the environment, is based on both the inherent toxicity of a compound and its potential dose. It is used to weight emissions inventoried as part of a life-cycle assessment (LCA) or in the toxics release inventory (TRI) and to aggregate emissions in terms of a reference compound. Total emissions can be evaluated in terms of benzene equivalence (carcinogens) and toluene equivalents (noncarcinogens). The potential dose is calculated using a generic fate and exposure model, CalTOX, which determines the distribution of a chemical in a model environment and accounts for a number of exposure routes, including inhalation, ingestion of produce, fish, and meat, and dermal contact with water and soil. Toxicity is represented by the cancer potency q1* for carcinogens and the safe dose (RfD, RfC) for noncarcinogens. This article presents cancer and noncancer HTP values for air and surface-water emissions of 330 compounds. This list covers 258 chemicals listed in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency TRI, or 79 weight-% of the TRI releases to air reported in 1997.
... The environmental impact categories [43] evaluated by these methods encompass range including climate change and Global Warming Potential (GWP) [44], focusing o substances such as CO2, CH4, N2O, and SF6, which contribute to the greenhouse effect an climate change. They also examine human toxicity and ecotoxicity [45][46][47] in various e vironments, addressing the impact of chemical substances on both the environment an human health. Moreover, these methods assess the acidification and eutrophication [4 51] potential of emissions, which influence the acidity of soils and waters [52,53] and co tribute to nutrient enrichment, leading to excessive algae growth in aquatic environmen Furthermore, the potential for ozone-layer depletion and the creation of photochem ical ozone [54], in addition to the impact of local pollutants like SOx, NOx, and particula matter, are analyzed. ...
... The environmental impact categories [43] evaluated by these methods encompass a range including climate change and Global Warming Potential (GWP) [44], focusing on substances such as CO 2 , CH 4 , N 2 O, and SF6, which contribute to the greenhouse effect and climate change. They also examine human toxicity and ecotoxicity [45][46][47] in various environments, addressing the impact of chemical substances on both the environment and human health. Moreover, these methods assess the acidification and eutrophication [48][49][50][51] potential of emissions, which influence the acidity of soils and waters [52,53] and contribute to nutrient enrichment, leading to excessive algae growth in aquatic environments. ...
The naval sector holds paramount importance for the global economy, yet it entails significant environmental impacts throughout the entire life cycle of ships. This review explores the application of life-cycle assessment (LCA) in the naval sector, a methodology for evaluating the environmental impacts associated with all the life stages of a product or service. LCA analysis in the naval context is essential for identifying and mitigating environmental impacts, thus promoting more sustainable development of the sector. This work provides a comprehensive overview of current LCA applications in the naval sector, highlighting major environmental impacts, in particular focusing on greenhouse-gas emissions and climate change. Additionally, this study integrates an analysis of greenhouse-gas emissions using a normalization approach, which has enabled the comparison of various types of fuels and ships, thereby enhancing our understanding of their environmental impacts. Moreover, the limits and challenges to applying LCA in the naval sector are discussed, offering insights for future research and developments in the field. This review aims to raise awareness among policymakers, designers, and operators in the naval sector about the importance of adopting LCA for more sustainable and responsible management of naval activities, thereby contributing to the protection of the marine and global environment.
... The remarkable difference in GWP values resulting from absorption and stripping processes can be explained by the fact that much more energy is needed for the stripping process. The human toxicity potential was mentioned for the first time by Guinée and Heijungs (1993) [72] to express the potential harm of a compound released into the environment on public health [72,73]. Human toxicity is used to weigh emissions inventoried as a part of an LCA by evaluating their impacts, such as carcinogens and non-carcinogens [73]. ...
... The human toxicity potential was mentioned for the first time by Guinée and Heijungs (1993) [72] to express the potential harm of a compound released into the environment on public health [72,73]. Human toxicity is used to weigh emissions inventoried as a part of an LCA by evaluating their impacts, such as carcinogens and non-carcinogens [73]. For the human toxicity impact category including HCTP and HNCTP, the results show that the highest LFR has the highest environmental impact because of the toxic byproducts produced during the manufacturing of solvents used in the experiments. ...
The present study evaluated the environmental impacts of post-combustion CO2 capture and recovery via membrane–gas absorption processes. We have used SimaPro v.9 packages with the Ecoinvent v3.5 database employing two different methods, ReCiPe 2016 Endpoint (H) and Midpoint (H), considering a fundamental methodological framework to determine the most environmentally friendly experimental condition. Life cycle impact categories were examined and assessed supposing a functional unit of 1 kgCO2/h recovered. Fourteen environmental impact categories including global warming, ozone depletion, eutrophication, and toxicity potentials have been evaluated within the context of a gate-to-gate approach focusing on only the process stage. Simulation results showed that the maximum liquid flow rate, sweep helium flow rate together with the minimum solvent concentration demonstrated the highest impact on human health, ecosystem, and resources. The usage of pure methyldiethanolamine (MDEA) activated by piperazine as a reactive absorbent provided the lowest environmental impact due to the elimination of the energy needed to heat and evaporate water present in aqueous absorbent solutions and the prevention of the excess water consumption depending on meeting the water needed for reactive absorption of CO2 in tertiary amine MDEA from simulated humidified flue gas stream. The study highlights the importance of LCA in the determination of an environmentally more sustainable condition during the capture and recovery of post-combustion CO2 by gas absorption and stripping using membrane contactors in tertiary amine MDEA.
... Ozone layer depletion is the gradual thinning of the earth's ozone layer in the atmosphere due to greenhouse gases (GHGs) and human activities (Hertwich et al., 2001). The ozone layer has the potential to prevent ultraviolet solar radiation to touch the earth's surface. ...
... The degree at which a mixture of substances (such as heavy metals) damages human health (Hertwich et al., 2001). It includes both generic and inherent toxicity relationships for emissions. ...
This article describes the environmental impacts of producing a single seedling in forest nurseries of selected districts (i.e., Haripur, Abbottabad, and Mansehra) of Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan using the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. This study was based on the cradle-to-gate approach which begins with the pre-nursery stage and progresses toward the main nursery before transplanting seedlings into the plantation site. Data or life cycle inventory (LCI) of seedling production were collected through questionnaire surveys and personal meetings with forest nurseries managers and workers regarding consumption of different inputs such as electricity, diesel, fertilizers, herbicides, and polyethylene bags, organic manure, and water consumption. The SimaPro software version 8.5 and the CML2000 v2.05 environmental model was applied to perform life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) for a single seedling production in forest nurseries in the study area. In line with the objectives of the study, primary data regarding inputs and outputs of the nurseries were collected from 35 nurseries in the study area by using a random questionnaire method. In addition, secondary data were taken from online databases such as Eco-invent v.3.2 CORRIM and peer-reviewed published literature. For this study, a functional unit of a single seedling was considered. Production weighted average data were modeled in the latest environmental modeling software i.e., SimaPro v.8.5 for ten US-EPA most wanted environmental impacts, such as global warming potential (GWP), abiotic depletion (AD), eutrophication potential (EP), acidification potential (AP), freshwater aquatic eco-toxicity (FAE), marine water eco-toxicity (MWE), terrestrial eco-toxicity (TE), ozone layer depletion (OLD), photochemical oxidation (PO), and human toxicity (HT). The results showed that the highest environmental impact posed by a single seedling was marine aquatic eco-toxicity (11.31360 kg 1,4-DB eq), followed by global warming potential (0.02945 kg CO2 eq) and (0.01227 kg 1,4-DB eq) human toxicity. The primary reason for these environmental burdens was the use of synthetic fertilizers in forest nurseries and the consumption of fossil fuels in nursery mechanization and transportation activities. The total cumulative energy demand for a single seedling was (0.800 MJ) with more than 90% contribution from fossil fuel energy resources such as petrol and diesel. It is therefore highly recommended to use renewable energy resources and organic fertilizers instead of chemical fertilizers in forest nurseries to avoid and minimize greenhouse gas emissions (GHS) and other toxic emissions in the study area.
... Ozone layer depletion is the gradual thinning of the earth's ozone layer in the atmosphere due to greenhouse gases (GHGs) and human activities (Hertwich et al., 2001). The ozone layer has the potential to prevent ultraviolet solar radiation to touch the earth's surface. ...
... The degree at which a mixture of substances (such as heavy metals) damages human health (Hertwich et al., 2001). It includes both generic and inherent toxicity relationships for emissions. ...
This article describes the environmental impacts of producing a single seedling in forest nurseries of selected districts (i.e., Haripur, Abbottabad, and Mansehra) of Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan using the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. This study was based on the cradle-to-gate approach which begins with the pre-nursery stage and progresses toward the main nursery before transplanting seedlings into the plantation site. Data or life cycle inventory (LCI) of seedling production were collected through questionnaire surveys and personal meetings with forest nurseries managers and workers regarding consumption of different inputs such as electricity, diesel, fertilizers, herbicides, and polyethylene bags, organic manure, and water consumption. The SimaPro software version 8.5 and the CML2000 v2.05 environmental model was applied to perform life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) for a single seedling production in forest nurseries in the study area. In line with the objectives of the study, primary data regarding inputs and outputs of the nurseries were collected from 35 nurseries in the study area by using a random questionnaire method. In addition, secondary data were taken from online databases such as Eco-invent v.3.2 CORRIM and peer-reviewed published literature. For this study, a functional unit of a single seedling was considered. Production weighted average data were modeled in the latest environmental modeling software i.e., SimaPro v.8.5 for ten US-EPA most wanted environmental impacts, such as global warming potential (GWP), abiotic depletion (AD), eutrophication potential (EP), acidification potential (AP), freshwater aquatic eco-toxicity (FAE), marine water eco-toxicity (MWE), terrestrial eco-toxicity (TE), ozone layer depletion (OLD), photochemical oxidation (PO), and human toxicity (HT). The results showed that the highest environmental impact posed by a single seedling was marine aquatic eco-toxicity (11.31360 kg 1,4-DB eq), followed by global warming potential (0.02945 kg CO2 eq) and (0.01227 kg 1,4-DB eq) human toxicity. The primary reason for these environmental burdens was the use of synthetic fertilizers in forest nurseries and the consumption of fossil fuels in nursery mechanization and transportation activities. The total cumulative energy demand for a single seedling was (0.800 MJ) with more than 90% contribution from fossil fuel energy resources such as petrol and diesel. It is therefore highly recommended to use renewable energy resources and organic fertilizers instead of chemical fertilizers in forest nurseries to avoid and minimize greenhouse gas emissions (GHS) and other toxic emissions in the study area.
... Ozone layer depletion is the gradual thinning of the earth's ozone layer in the atmosphere due to greenhouse gases (GHGs) and human activities (Hertwich et al., 2001). The ozone layer has the potential to prevent ultraviolet solar radiation to touch the earth's surface. ...
... The degree at which a mixture of substances (such as heavy metals) damages human health (Hertwich et al., 2001). It includes both generic and inherent toxicity relationships for emissions. ...
This article describes the environmental impacts of producing a single seedling in forest nurseries of selected districts (i.e., Haripur, Abbottabad, and Mansehra) of Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan using the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. This study was based on the cradle-to-gate approach which begins with the pre-nursery stage and progresses toward the main nursery before transplanting seedlings into the plantation site. Data or life cycle inventory (LCI) of seedling production were collected through questionnaire surveys and personal meetings with forest nurseries managers and workers regarding consumption of different inputs such as electricity, diesel, fertilizers, herbicides, and polyethylene bags, organic manure, and water consumption. The SimaPro software version 8.5 and the CML2000 v2.05 environmental model was applied to perform life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) for a single seedling production in forest nurseries in the study area. In line with the objectives of the study, primary data regarding inputs and outputs of the nurseries were collected from 35 nurseries in the study area by using a random questionnaire method. In addition, secondary data were taken from online databases such as Eco-invent v.3.2 CORRIM and peer-reviewed published literature. For this study, a functional unit of a single seedling was considered. Production weighted average data were modeled in the latest environmental modeling software i.e., SimaPro v.8.5 for ten US-EPA most wanted environmental impacts, such as global warming potential (GWP), abiotic depletion (AD), eutrophication potential (EP), acidification potential (AP), freshwater aquatic eco-toxicity (FAE), marine water eco-toxicity (MWE), terrestrial eco-toxicity (TE), ozone layer depletion (OLD), photochemical oxidation (PO), and human toxicity (HT). The results showed that the highest environmental impact posed by a single seedling was marine aquatic eco-toxicity (11.31360 kg 1,4-DB eq), followed by global warming potential (0.02945 kg CO2 eq) and (0.01227 kg 1,4-DB eq) human toxicity. The primary reason for these environmental burdens was the use of synthetic fertilizers in forest nurseries and the consumption of fossil fuels in nursery mechanization and transportation activities. The total cumulative energy demand for a single seedling was (0.800 MJ) with more than 90% contribution from fossil fuel energy resources such as petrol and diesel. It is therefore highly recommended to use renewable energy resources and organic fertilizers instead of chemical fertilizers in forest nurseries to avoid and minimize greenhouse gas emissions (GHS) and other toxic emissions in the study area.
... HTP is used to measure emissions inventoried as part of life cycle assessment (LCA) or in toxic release inventories and to aggregate emissions in terms of reference compounds. Total emissions can be evaluated in terms of benzene equivalence (carcinogen) and toluene equivalence (non-carcinogen) [20]. The substances that contribute to human toxicity are numerous and cannot be explained even by certain groups. ...
... The substances that contribute to human toxicity are numerous and cannot be explained even by certain groups. Normalization references to human toxicity include impacts from NMVOC (from road transport), heavy metals (cadmium, lead, mercury, etc.), nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chlorinated organic compounds, organic pollutants persistent (POP), and particulate matter (PM 10 ) [20]. ...
Graphene is graphite composed of a single layer, consisting of sp² carbon atoms hybridized in a hexagonal crystal lattice. Graphene can be synthesized using rich carbon materials, such as graphite and biomass. Graphene production is developed to be synthesized on an industrial scale. An important parameter within industrial process is the impact on environmental health and safety. In this study, a comparative study of environmental impacts was carried out through a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach for graphene synthesis from two different methods, namely chemical activation based on biomass (rice husk) and electrochemical exfoliation based on flake graphite as raw materials. The utilized software is open LCA with cradle to gate as system boundary. The functional unit as the basis for calculation is 27.0833 kg/hour of graphene production. Environmental impacts resulting from the production of graphene-based on biomass and flake graphite are acidification, eutrophication, global warming (GWP 100a), human toxicity, and photochemical oxidation. The highest impact contribution resulting from the graphene production process from flake graphite is eutrophication which value 17551.58 kg PO4³⁻ eq. that caused by the material transportations and flake graphite neutralizing unit process. The highest contribution to the impact on graphene production from rice husks is global warming potential (GWP 100a) of 24.2572 kg CO2 eq. originating from the transportation unit process. The suggested improvement recommendations for the two production process systems are substituting diesel fuel with biodiesel (B30) or substituting the transportation mode with electric vehicle (EV) and recycling acid in the graphite flake neutralizing unit process. Through these recommendations, both impact category that contributed the most and other impacts successfully decreased.
... Another impact category analyzed was human toxicity, and human toxicity potential is the potential harm of a unit of chemical released into the environment. Toxicity is represented by the cancer potential for carcinogens and the safe dose for non-carcinogens [44]. From the system, Figure 8 depicts the substances that contributed to human toxicity assessment. ...
... Barium enters the air during refining processes and coal and oil combustion, and its compounds that dissolve Another impact category analyzed was human toxicity, and human toxicity potential is the potential harm of a unit of chemical released into the environment. Toxicity is represented by the cancer potential for carcinogens and the safe dose for non-carcinogens [44]. From the system, Figure 8 depicts the substances that contributed to human toxicity assessment. ...
In the development of packaging products, the considerations are not limited to the food shelf-life, safety, and practicality, but also environmental sustainability. This paper reports a life cycle assessment (LCA) analysis of a proposed natural fiber-reinforced biopolymer composite takeout food container. The study focuses on the damage assessment of the whole product system, including disposal scenarios of the thermoformed sugar palm fiber (SPF)-reinforced sago starch composite takeout food container. The analysis performed was to anticipate the environmental impact of the cradle-to-grave approach. The results exhibited the total human health damage of 2.63 × 10−5 DALY and ecosystem damage of 9.46 × 10−8 species.year per kg of containers. The main contributor was the carbon dioxide emission from fossil fuel combustion for energy generation that contributed to climate change and caused human health and the ecosystem damages with low-level metrics of 1.3 × 10−5 DALY and 7.39 × 10−8 species.yr per kg of containers, respectively. The most contributed substances in the ‘Particulate matter formation’ impact categories that caused respiratory diseases were from air/nitrogen oxides, air/particulates, <2.5 µm, and air/sulphur dioxide with the metrics of 2.93 × 10−6 DALY, 2.75 × 10−6 DALY, and 1.9 × 10−6 DALY per kg containers, correspondingly. Whereas, for the ‘Agricultural land occupation’, which contributed to ecosystem damage, almost the total contributions came from raw/occupation, forest, intensive with the metric of 1.93 × 10−9 species.yr per kg of containers. Nevertheless, from the results, all impact categories impacted below than 0.0001 DALY for the Human Health damage category and below 0.00001 species.yr for the ecosystem damage category. These results would provide important insights to companies and manufacturers in commercializing the fully biobased takeout food containers.
... Emissions can be assessed on the basis of benzene equivalence for carcinogens and toluene equivalents for noncarcinogens. The potential dose is determined by a generic fate and exposure model that analyzes the distribution of a chemical in a simulated environment and considers several exposure pathways such as inhalation, ingestion of food, fish, and meat, and skin contact with water and soil (Hertwich et al. 2001). Figure 14 shows that the top five contributors to the HTP impact category in SRP paste production are glass (45%), fertilizer, steel production in the packaging and transportation step, diesel from transport processes, and electricity. ...
This study examines cumulative energy (CEnC), exergy (CExC), CO₂ emissions (CCO₂C), and life cycle assessment of sweet red pepper (SRP) paste production. A whole system approach in five improvement scenarios including different packaging materials and precision farming encompasses the supply chain from farm to fork and cradle to gate. The largest impact on SRP farming is caused by the use of diesel oil, the excessive use of chemical fertilizers, and the use of electricity. In SRP farming step, the CEnC is mainly caused by 86.5% fertilizer and 11% diesel usage. Hotspot impact categories were determined as abiotic (fossil) depletion potential, global warming potential, and human toxicity potential. The base case scenario has the greatest values for CEnC, CExC, and CCO₂C and impact assessment results. A CEnC value reduction of 48.6%, 50%, and 30% in the factory processing, packaging‐transportation step and whole process, respectively, is observed when the biodiesel scenario is performed. With a 40% reduction in global warming potential value, the combination of polyethylene terephthalate packaging, biodiesel, and precision farming scenario yielded the best results for each impact category analyzed in this study.
... The human toxicity potential (HTP) is an indicator of potential harm caused due to the release of a chemical into the environment. It depends on the inherent toxicity of a compound and its dose [39]. The HTP is reported in terms of 1, 4-Dichlorobenzene (DCB, C 6 H 4 Cl 2 ) equivalence (carcinogens) and toluene equivalents (noncarcinogens). ...
Red mud is a by-product from alumina industry. Global production of red mud was around 369 million tons in 2023, and India contributed over 6% of total. Landfilling of red mud may leach out heavy metals to soil and water, which could have negative consequences for the ecosystem. Incorporating the red mud in a geopolymer matrix is a safe option. This paper aims to analyse the environmental impact of the 1.0 m³ red mud containing geopolymer paving blocks using GaBi (Indian extension database) software. The data used for the analysis was generated from the studies conducted in continuous geopolymer pilot plant (10 tons/day). The analysis shows the major contributions from alkali activators and electricity. Red mud paving blocks exhibit global warming potential (275 kg CO2 eq.), human toxicity (51.7 kg DCB eq.), and terrestrial ecotoxicity potential (0.441 kg DCB eq.). Red mud blocks have similar acidification (1.65 kg SO2 eq.) and abiotic depletion potential (fossil) (3080 MJ) on comparison with cement paving blocks. Red mud geopolymer paving blocks offer a sustainable alternative with the reduced environmental footprint compared to conventional methods.
... It was also possible to include other environmental impact categories that may also provide some benefits given their analysis, such as water usage (to calculate the use of freshwater to produce goods and services that are consumed by customers and individuals, or produced by companies) [56]; resource depletion (as part of the analysis that allows decision-making to reduce water shortages or potential damage to ecosystems, including humans) [57]; and toxicity (toxicity to humans, which allows for estimating the potential damage of substances released into the environment) [58]. ...
The development of materials and the products made from them should respond to new challenges posed by market changes and also by climate change. Therefore, the objective of this investigation was to develop a method that supports the sustainable development of materials and the products made from them based on an aggregated indicator of quality and environmental load in the life cycle (QLCA). The testing and illustration of the QLCA method included a passenger car tyre and nine prototypes. These prototypes were described using eight quality criteria: season, class, size of the load index, speed index, rolling, adhesion, and external noise. Then, customer expectations regarding the importance of the criteria and satisfaction with the indicators in the current and modified states were obtained. Based on the customer assessment, the quality indicators of the prototypes were assessed. This assessment was supported by the weighted sum model (WSM) and the entropy method. Then, life cycle assessment for the reference tyre was performed using the Ecoinvent database in the OpenLCA program. LCA indicators were modelled for other prototypes, taking into account quality changes. As a result of the verification of the method, an aggregated QLCA indicator was estimated, based on which it was possible to select the most favourable (qualitatively and environmentally) prototype out of nine. This was the P4 prototype (QLCA = 0.57). The next position in the ranking was taken by P7 (QLCA = 0.43). The QLCA method can be used to determine the direction of development of materials and products in terms of their sustainable development.
... The melting point is one of the significant indicators, the high melting point reduces the viscosity and improves the processability of the biopolymer [20]. The human health indicator is considered for the social aspect, which determines the exposure and effects of toxic substances for biopolymer production [27]. Moreover, the migration of nanomaterial (the particles' size, and the biopolymer's consumption rate) affects human health [28]. ...
Sustainable development in the agriculture sector can be boosted by integrating a sustainable bioeconomy and transforming renewable resources into added-value products. There are various methods to determine, measure, and compare the extent of sustainability. We promote the bioeconomy concept by utilizing agricultural waste in biopolymers considering the sustainable development in the agriculture sector. This research aims to evaluate biopolymer alternatives based on sustainability criteria and indicators using the integrated multi-criteria decision analysis approach under the sustainability umbrella. We evaluated the PLA, PHA/PHB, starch, protein, and cellulose-based biopolymers. As a result, the cellulose-based biopolymer shows the best performance. The research findings provide valuable information to establish a sustainable pathway for biopolymer production for industries.
... The functional unit (FU), as a measure of the output function of the product system, is to supply a reference benchmark for related inputs and outputs. FU is a crucial basis for the simultaneous comparison and analysis of optional scenarios (Hertwich et al., 2001;Teoh and Li, 2020). In previous LCA studies of sewage sludge treatment units, the specified amounts of sewage or sludge mass is a common FU (Hospido et al., 2004;Yoshida et al., 2013;Ding et al., 2021). ...
With increasing population and urbanization, the amount of municipal sewage sludge generated is huge and growing rapidly. In order to minimize resource inputs and pollutant emissions in the sludge disposal process, it is crucial to carry out an environmental impact analysis and sustainability assessment of different strategies based on life cycle assessment (LCA). LCA provides a flexible framework for quantifying the consumption and emissions of different processes to determine the energy consumption and environmental impact of sewage sludge treatment and disposal. The aim of this review is to compare the energy consumption and GHG emissions of existing sludge management options for energy and nutrient recovery. At the same time, the characteristics of sewage sludge and the potential to convert sludge from waste to valuable products were assessed. While the excessive moisture content and ash content make sludge unsuitable for use as fuel, and the potential risk of contamination with heavy metals makes it less suitable for use as organic fertilizer, energy and material recovery during disposal can reduce disposal costs and environmental impacts. In the context of the current limitations reviewed, the level of potential GHG emissions of existing sludge treatment and disposal routes is: composting > anaerobic digestion > pyrolysis > incineration. With suitable sludge treatment routes, negative GHG emissions could potentially be achieved by substituting fossil fuels for heat and electricity generation, or as a fertilizer substitute. The development and application of future sludge management strategies should aim at reduction and harmless disposal, thereby reducing the operating costs and environmental burdens through resources.
... The melting point is one of the significant indicators, the high melting point reduces the viscosity and improves the processability of the biopolymer [20]. The human health indicator is considered for the social aspect, which determines the exposure and effects of toxic substances for biopolymer production [27]. Moreover, the migration of nanomaterial (the particles' size, and the biopolymer's consumption rate) affects human health [28]. ...
Sustainable development in the agriculture sector can be boosted by integrating a sustainable bioeconomy and transforming renewable resources into added-value products. There are various methods to determine, measure, and compare the extent of sustainability. We promote the bioeconomy concept by utilizing agricultural waste in biopolymers considering the sustainable development in the agriculture sector. This research aims to evaluate biopolymer alternatives based on sustainability criteria and indicators using the integrated multi-criteria decision analysis approach under the sustainability umbrella. The authors evaluated the PLA, PHA/PHB, starch, protein, and cellulose-based biopolymers. As a result, the cellulose-based biopolymer shows the best performance. The research findings provide valuable information to establish a sustainable pathway for biopolymer production for industries.
... Potential harm is [41]. The use of fossil fuels to generate electricity releases toxins, resulting in local and global pollution [42] that could have serious consequences for human health and ecosystems in general [41][42][43]. Other countries have expressed concern about the potential harm of fossil fuel-based electricity generation [42] Figure 13 depicts that the total maximum impact for Marine Ecotoxicity is 3.25 points. ...
The foundry industry is increasingly feeling the heat of the narrowing climate
change-related regulations on a global level and is being labelled as a ‘‘dirty’’
industry. With an aim to analyse the environmentally sustainable functioning of
modern foundries, the presented study has been conducted. It evaluates the
manufacturing process of an aluminium & titanium-based metal matrix
nanocomposite prepared using the stir casting technique. The life cycle assess-ment has been performed with ReCiPe 2016 endpoint (H) and midpoint
(H) approaches. The overall engenderment process has been divided into four
subdivisions, namely aluminium procurement subdivision (SD1), TiO2
nanoparticle procurement subdivision (SD2), mould fabrication & procurement
subdivision (SD3), and nanocomposite fabrication subdivision (SD4). The outcome of the impact assessment reveals that when considering the endpoint
approach, the SD4 accounts for 70.34% of the total impact score followed by SD1
at 26.08%, while SD2 and SD3 contributed frivolously at 0.05 and 3.52%,
respectively. Furthermore, utilizing the ReCiPe midpoint method, it has been
revealed that SD4 contributes 56.37% of the overall impact while SD1, SD2, and
SD3 contribute 36.34, 0.04, and 7.25%, respectively. From the end-of-life point of
view, it has been ascertained that about 75.34% of the impact arises from the
product phase while 24.66% comes from waste treatment. Furthermore, it has
additionally been highlighted that a shift from coal-predicated electricity generation to renewable sources such as hydro-electric, wind, or solar shall play a
vital role in revoking its detrimental effects.
... For instance, some research undertaken in the United States exploits the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) information on the toxic emissions the companies have to communicate. With regard to this information, certain authors [38,68,69] adopt the emissions of toluene and benzene, both toxic, as a negative indication of a company's environmental performance. On the other hand, authors such as King and Lenox or Kock et al. utilise EPA data to elaborate a calculation of waste on the basis of toxicity [8,48]. ...
This paper presents a framework for our hypotheses that the independence of a board of directors and the use of digital technology might influence the way a corporation performs environmentally. For empirical verification of our thesis, we take a sample of 53 publicly listed Italian companies and look at data on their board composition, greenhouse gas emissions, and expenditures for the use of digital technologies of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) over a period of five years. What emerges from the test partially supports our predictions. In particular, we find that a higher level of board independence is associated with better environmental performance. There is no direct, statistically significant association between the use of digital technologies and environmental performance, so a greater use of digital technologies is not, in itself, sufficient to improve the environmental performance of a firm. However, our empirical analyses find that environmental performance is positively influenced by the use of digital technologies in firms that include a proportionately high number of independent directors on their boards. This research improves our understanding of antecedents of Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR), showing how the share of independent directors on a board has a positive impact on CDR, understood here as the set of practices and behaviours that help an organisation use data and digital technologies in ways that are environmentally responsible.
... Toxicity is expressed in terms of HTP. According to [13] HTP is an index which reflects the potential harm of a unit of chemical when released in the environment and is evaluated in terms of tonne of 1,4 dichlorobenzene (DCB) equivalents per functional unit. The functional unit is 1 tonne of ethylene oxide processed. ...
Monoethanolamine is an essential chemical used as feedstock in the production of detergents, emulsifiers, pharmaceuticals, polishes, corrosion inhibitors, and chemical intermediates. It is produced industrially by treating ethylene oxide with aqueous ammonia, but the reaction also leads to di- and tri-ethanolamine as less desired by-products.
This study is the first to propose an intensified process for the production of ethanolamines combining reactive distillation (RD) and dividing-wall column (DWC) technologies. The process was optimized to maximize the MEA selectivity (over 71%), as the ratio of the products can be controlled by the stoichiometry of the reactants. Rigorous process simulations and sensitivity analysis of key process parameters have been carried out using Aspen Plus, for a plant with a production capacity of 11.5 ktpy ethanolamines. The overall process has been designed to produce ethanolamines with minimal energy utilization and reduced capital cost. Economic and sustainability analysis have been carried out showing the key benefits of the proposed process as compared to the conventional one used in industry: CapEx reduction of 7.3%, OpEx savings of 42%, and TAC improvements of 31.3%.
... It is based on both the inherent toxicity and the potential dose of the substance. Finaly, global warming can be defined as an increase in the Earth's average surface temperature caused by the emission of greenhouse gases (32) . Figure 3 shows the results of the impact assessment of the electricity generation process using cocoa pod husk in Côte d'Ivoire. ...
Objectives: This study assesses the environmental performance of cocoa pod husk as a fuel for a biomass power plant in Côte d'Ivoire. Methods: In this study, a life cycle assessment (LCA) is applied to identify four environmental impacts generated during the production of electrical energy. LCA assesses the environmental impact on the global warming potential of electricity production from a biomass power plant using a cocoa pod husk in Côte d'Ivoire. The greenhouse gas emissions of this electricity production are compared with those of other energy sources. Findings: The results show that the production of one kilowatt-hour results in the emission of 1.12 g SO 2 eq,0.28 g PO 4 eq., 9.91 g 1.4 DBeq. and 328.22 g CO 2 eq. These emissions involve acidification, eutrophication, human toxicity and global warming respectively. The sensitivity analysis showed that the transport distance has an effect on the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the chain. The sensitivity analysis showed that the transport distance has an effect on the GHG emissions of the sector. Thus, GHG emissions increase with the distance travelled by the transport vehicle. The analysis identified power plant locations that would reduce GHG emissions for the production of 1 kWh of electricity. Novelty: The life cycle assessment was used to evaluate the environmental impact of various processes using crop residues for energy purposes.
... 2 Glyphosate (GLY, Scheme 1) is a widely used broad-spectrum herbicide in many regions worldwide and causes damage to human cells. [3][4][5] Various reports indicate that the half-life of GLY in the soil extends to months, increasing the risk of erosion and contamination of surface and groundwater sources. 6,7 Furthermore, the possible degradation product of GLY (DPG) i.e., aminomethyl phosphonic acid (APA), is known as equally toxic as GLY. 8 Therefore, the removal of GLY from a medium is essential to protect human health and the environment. ...
Glyphosate (GLY) is a nonselective herbicide that has been widely used in agriculture for weed control. However, there are potential genetic, development and reproduction risks to humans and animals associated with exposure to GLY. Therefore, the removal of this type of environmental pollutants has become a significant challenge. Some of the two-dimensional nanomaterials, due to the characteristics of hydrophilic nature, abundant highly active surficial sites and, large specific surface area are showed high removal efficiency for a wide range of pollutants. The present study focused on the adsorption behavior of GLY on silicene nanosheets (SNS). In order to provide more detailed information about the adsorption mechanism of contaminants on the adsorbent's surface, molecular dynamics (MD) and well-tempered metadynamics simulations are performed. The MD results are demonstrated that the contribution of the L-J term in pollutant/adsorbent interactions is more than coulombic energy. Furthermore, the simulation results demonstrated the lowest total energy value for system-A (with the lowest pollutant concentration), while system-D (contains the highest concentration of GLY) had the most total energy (E tot: -78.96 vs. -448.51 kJ mol-1). The well-tempered metadynamics simulation is accomplished to find the free energy surface of the investigated systems. The free energy calculation for the SNS/GLY system indicates a stable point in which the distance of GLY from the SNS surface is 1.165 nm.
... With different methodologies already published, immediately subsequent studies try to improve deficiencies that these first systems present. The number of evaluated substances is increased, and more emphasis is made on human toxicity, although it is only evaluated in the use phase (Hertwich et al., 2001). ...
This review systematically analyses the most relevant contributions published in the area of toxicity of building materials and their evaluation from the perspective of life cycle analysis to give a critical view of the relationship between the two fields. For this review, the systematic literature review methodology was chosen. With this methodology, it is possible to identify the most important sources and obtain a complete reading of the state of the question. The review shows that most articles on the toxicity of building materials focus on the usage phase, ignoring the life cycle perspective. On the other hand, the different Life Cycle Assessment methodologies start from different inventories, so the results will vary depending on the chosen method. In all cases, the predictions on toxicity are underestimated, so they are considered a secondary impact, and also the effects of bioaccumulation have not been integrated into the methodology. The main conflictive points found are discussed, such as the lack of coverage of substances widely used in the construction sector or the need to integrate new impacts.
... Human toxicity concerns the effects of toxic substances on the human environment (with the exclusion of work environments). Human toxicity potentials (HTP) describe fate, exposure, and the effects of toxic substances [111,112]. The impact of a compound is affected by the amount emitted, the mobility of the substance, its persistence, exposure patterns and bioavailability, as well as its intrinsic toxicity. ...
Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a fundamental tool for evaluating the environmental and energy load of a production cycle. Its application to renewable energy production systems offers the possibility of identifying the environmental benefits of such processes—especially those related to the by-products of production processes (i.e., digestion or biochar). Biochar has received worldwide interest because of its potential uses in bioenergy production, due to its coproducts (bio-oil and syngas), as well as in global warming mitigation, sustainable agriculture, pollutant removal, and other uses. Biochar production and use of soil is a strategy for carbon sequestration that could contribute to the reduction of emissions, providing simultaneous benefits to soil and opportunities for bioenergy generation. However, to confirm all of biochar’s benefits, it is necessary to characterize the environmental and energy loads of the production cycle. In this work, soil carbon sequestration, nitrous oxide emissions, use of fertilizers, and use of water for irrigation have been considered in the biochar’s LCA, where the latter is used as a soil conditioner. Primary data taken from experiments and prior studies, as well as open-source available databases, were combined to evaluate the environmental impacts of energy production from biomass, as well as the biochar life cycle, including pre- and post-conversion processes. From the found results, it can be deduced that the use of gasification production of energy and biochar is an attractive strategy for mitigating the environmental impacts analyzed here—especially climate change, with a net decrease of about −8.3 × 103 kg CO2 eq. Finally, this study highlighted strategic research developments that combine the specific characteristics of biochar and soil that need to be amended.
... HTP includes both inherent toxicity and generic source-to-dose relationships for pollutant emissions to the human terrestrial environment while MAETP quantifies the impact related to the emissions of all chemicals to marine aquatic surroundings [34,35]. The geographic extent of both HTP and MAETP indicators establishes the fate of a material and can differ between local and global scale. ...
Seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination is a widely adopted desalination technology given its cost effectiveness and lower energy consumption compared to thermal methods. However, SWRO is sensitive to intake water quality and requires strict pretreatment, which requires significant chemical inputs. This study evaluates the relative environmental impacts of water quality (site selection) and specific selection of chemicals on the overall environmental burden of the SWRO process. A life cycle assessment was carried out of environmental emissions based on an existing SWRO plant in the Arabian Gulf, which was remodelled and sized in AqMB® software based on different intake water quality gathered from seawater samples collected from 19 locations across 563 km of Arabian Gulf coastline. The study concluded that a total reduction of close to 25% in different environmental impacts was possible only by optimizing the location of plant, while careful selection of chemicals, particularly those in coagulation, disinfection and pH neutralization, could significantly influence environmental impact categories with high normalized impact such as marine ecotoxicity potential (MAETP). In comparison, renewable energy in the form of wind provided large reductions in certain significant impact categories, but provided a large increase in MAETP compared to natural gas.
... For example, some studies carried out in the USA make use of data on firms' toxic emissions, held by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which American firms are obliged to communicate. With reference to these data, some authors [16,47,105] use firms' emissions of the toxic substances, benzene and toluene, as a negative proxy of the quality of their green performance. Other authors like [26,39] make use of EPA data to formulate a toxicity-weighted evaluation of waste, which, for example, is measured as a sum of the kilogrammes of chemicals emitted by the firm, weighed for a coefficient of toxicity equal to the inverse of the corresponding 'reportable quantities' (RQ). ...
In this paper, we first build a multi-theoretical framework through which we hypothesise that the governance mechanisms of a board of directors, on the one hand, and the ownership structures of family and nonfamily firms, on the other, can have an impact on corporate environmental performances. We then test this hypothesis against a sample of 83 Italian listed firms, noting the characteristics of their governance and ownership structures over the five years from 2013 to 2017. We also take note of data from the firms’ Sustainability Reports on emissions of greenhouse gases over the 2014–2018 five-year period. The results we obtain support the prediction, made in line with the Agency-Theory perspective, that there is a positive relationship between board independence and the adoption of environmentally responsible practices. Only partial support emerges for the hypotheses, made in line with the Resource Dependence Theory, according to which better corporate environmental performances can be obtained by increasing the resource provision of board members. In particular, we discover a positive effect of a large-size board on corporate environmental performances, but no significant effect arising from the presence of interlocked board members. Finally, our study provides support for the theoretically-based hypothesis according to which the non-economic utility (socioemotional wealth) of family ownership makes family firms likely to have better environmental performances than non-family firms.
... The human toxicity potential is a calculated index that reflects the potential damage of a chemical released into the environment. This parameter is based on the intrinsic toxicity of the pollutant and its potential dose (Hertwich et al. 2009). For the human carcinogenic impact, the characterization factors were expressed in terms of comparative toxic units (CTU) and characterized to human toxic units (CTUh). ...
Industrial processes, such as smelting and mining, lead to antimony (Sb) contamination, which poses an environmental and human health risk. In this study, the energy consumption and environmental impacts of a passive biological treatment system were quantitatively evaluated using life cycle assessment (LCA), and the results were compared with that of an adsorption purification system. The results showed that the biosystem had a lower energy consumption compared with the adsorption system, with an energy savings of 27.39%. The environmental impacts of the bioreactor were also lower regarding acidification, ecotoxicity, carcinogens, climate change, resource depletion, and respiratory effects. The construction resulted in the most energy consumption (99%) for the passive bioreactor. Therefore, adopting environmentally friendly construction materials could make the biosystem a more energy-efficient option. Results demonstrated that the bioreactor in this research can have great potential for Sb mine drainage applications in terms of energy savings and environmental remediation without diminishing performance. The study findings can be useful for deciding the most energy effective process for mine drainage remediation. In addition, the identification of the energy and environmental impacts of the processes provide valuable information for the design of future systems that consume less materials and utilize new construction materials.
We investigate the association between a wide range of community-level environmental, social, and governance (ESG) outcomes and the credit risk of U.S. municipal finance fixed-income securities. We develop a novel dataset of multiple ESG outcomes for U.S. counties and connect it to a 2001-2020 panel of municipal bonds issued within those counties. Overall, we find supportive evidence that collective increases in community-level ESG factors (i.e., ESG outcomes) are associated with reductions in credit risk for U.S. municipal finance instruments over time. We theorize that these associations arise from variations in investor perceptions and manifested changes in fiscal health over time as a function of changing ESG outcomes. Post hoc analyses leveraging quasi-exogenous shocks to uncertainty, as well as connecting ESG outcomes to various measures of fiscal health at the county-year level, and credit ratings at the bond-year level, help validate this theory. Our research suggests that even socially agnostic investors should investigate the environmental and social performance of a municipality as part of their credit due diligence.
The aim of this study is to assess the environmental performance of the manufacturing process of glass/polyester laminates as well as estimate their fire behaviour and smoke release. The Life Cycle Assessment was conducted according to the ISO14040/44 standard by using the CML-IA 2000 Baseline Midpoint method. The cone calorimeter study was conducted using a cone calorimeter method according to ISO 5660. The tests were performed under 25 kW/m2 heat flux 50 kW/m2. The results showed that according to the requirements of the Fire Test Procedure (FTP) Code examined, laminates in this form cannot be used in some applications. The LCA study showed that the highest impact is attributed to marine aquatic ecotoxicity (88.3%), with the highest contribution of the unsaturated polyester resin and the glass fibre.
Fluorescent lamps are hazardous materials, as they contain toxic elements, which may lead to environmental contamination. Therefore, assessing potential environmental impacts arising from inadequate lamp disposal is paramount. Studies addressing the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of end-of-life fluorescent lamps are, however, still scarce, and inappropriate lamp disposal remains a matter of concern, especially in developing and underdeveloped countries. In Brazil, fluorescent lamps are still used countrywide and are often inadequately discarded. Studies assessing fluorescent lamp impacts and potential impact reduction through enhanced recycling are, however, still scarce in the country, despite Brazil's size and high waste generation rates. Furthermore, Brazil's lamp recycling program is a recent measure and still falls short of the country's needs. Thus, this study aimed to assess potential environmental impacts of end-of-life fluorescent lamps in Rio de Janeiro, the second largest capital in Brazil, to the best of our knowledge, for the first time. Potential impact reductions due to higher recycling program adherence considering 5, 20, 80 and 100% recycling rates were also assessed. The findings indicate that the impact categories most influenced by end-of-life lamps were terrestrial ecotoxicity, human non-carcinogenic toxicity, global warming potential, and fossil resource scarcity. Increased recycling rates, in turn, reduced the environmental impact potential for all evaluated categories, reaching an almost 90% reduction in most categories when applying a 100% recycling rate. The current national program target recycling rate of 20%, however, already contributes to an average impact reduction of over 70%, comprising a more viable national application rate and already significantly contributing to reduced impacts.
Municipal solid waste management (MSWM) is an exigent and emerging problem in India. Despite various MSWM options, landfill continues to be the ultimate disposal destination of solid waste leading to ecosystem damage and leachate generation. The appropriate MSWM options and landfill leachate treatment become a matter of great apprehension to avoid negative impacts on the surrounding environment. In the present study, three LCA-based potential scenarios of systematic solid waste management, including anaerobic digestion, composting and landfilling, were analyzed and compared. The life cycle assessment (LCA) model was created in the Gabi 17.00 software for analyzing the impact of every steps involved in the MSWM system. Further, the study also focuses on leachate management of the Bhandewadi landfill site, situated in Nagpur City, India, using five different types of adsorbents, viz. rice husk, granular activated charcoal, powdered activated charcoal, compost and fly ash. Among the different scenario’s analyzed and various impact categories studied, the LCA of all the three scenarios highlights that the global warming potential and human toxicity potential of scenario one is comparatively lower than other scenarios. Further, the adsorbents used in the study have potential for the removal of containments. The diffusion profile analysis of leachate through different types of adsorbents used revealed that the chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency enhances with thickness of the adsorbent. The study emphasized that it is crucial for decision-makers associated with waste management sector to focus on environment friendly MSWM approaches. It is also recommended that the decision and policymakers adhere and follow the stringent implementation of laws and regulations associated to the MSWM system.
Hydrogen is recognized as a critical substance for diversifying the global energy supply, providing new economic opportunities, and realizing a carbon-free energy sector. In the current study, a life cycle assessment is conducted on a photoelectrochemical hydrogen production process by a newly developed photoelectrochemical reactor. With a photoactive electrode area of 870 cm2, the hydrogen production rate of the reactor is 47.1 μg/s while operating with energy and exergy efficiencies of 6.3% and 6.31%, respectively. For a Faradaic efficiency of 96%, the produced current density is evaluated as 3.15 mA/cm2. A comprehensive study is conducted for a cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment of the proposed hydrogen production system. The life cycle assessment results of the proposed system are further evaluated within a comparative analysis considering four key hydrogen generation processes, namely steam-methane reforming, photovoltaics, and wind electricity-driven proton exchange membrane water electrolysis and the current photoelectrochemical system by means of five impact categories. The global warming potential of hydrogen production via the proposed photoelectrochemical cell is evaluated as 1.052 kg CO2 equivalent per kg of produced hydrogen. In the normalized comparative life cycle assessment results, the PEC-based hydrogen production is found to be the most nature-friendly option among the considered pathways.
Purpose:
Concurrent increases in global cancer burden and the climate crisis pose an unprecedented threat to public health and human wellbeing. Today the healthcare sector greatly contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, with the future demand for healthcare services expected to rise. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is an internationally standardized tool that analyzes the inputs and outputs of products, processes, and systems to quantify associated environmental impacts. This critical review explains the use of LCA methodology and outlines its application in external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) with the aim of providing a robust methodology to quantify the environmental impact of radiotherapy care practices today.
Materials and methods:
The steps of an LCA are outlined and explained as defined by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 14040 and 14044) guidelines: (1) definition of the goal and scope of the LCA, (2) inventory analysis, (3) impact assessment, and (4) interpretation.
Results:
The existing LCA framework and its methodology is described and applied to the field of radiation oncology. The goal and scope of its application to EBRT is the evaluation of the environmental impact of a single EBRT treatment course within a radiation oncology department. The methodology for data collection via mapping of the resources used (inputs) and the end-of-life processes (outputs) associated with EBRT is explained, with subsequent explanation of the LCA analysis steps. Finally, the importance of appropriate sensitivity analysis and the interpretations that can be drawn from LCA results are both reviewed.
Conclusion:
This critical review of LCA protocol provides and evaluates a methodological framework to scientifically establish baseline environmental performance measurements within a healthcare setting, and assists in identifying targets for emissions mitigation. Future LCAs in the field of radiation oncology and across medical specialties will be crucial in informing best-practices for equitable and sustainable care in a changing climate.
Pollutant release inventories are used for environmental policy making to reduce toxic pollutants, even though the quantity-based inventory analysis does not take into account the relative toxicity of pollutants. To overcome this limit, life cycle impact assessment (LCIA)-based inventory analysis was developed but still has a high uncertainty from modelling the site- and time-specific fates and transports of pollutants. Thus, this study develops a methodology to evaluate toxicity potentials based on the concentration of pollutants in the exposure to humans in order to circumvent the uncertainty and subsequently screen priority toxins in pollutant release inventories. This methodology combines (i) analytical measurement of the concentration of the pollutants exposed to humans; (ii) application of toxicity effect characterization factors for pollutants; and (iii) identification of priority toxins and industries based on the toxicity potential evaluation results. To demonstrate the methodology, a case study is considered, evaluating toxicity potentials from the ingestion of heavy metals in seafood organisms and then identifying priority toxins and industry sectors in a pollutant release inventory. The results of the case study show that the methodology-based priority pollutant is different from the quantity- and LCIA-based ones. Therefore, the methodology can contribute to making effective environmental policy.
Background: Plastics have conveyed great benefits to humanity and made possible some of the most significant advances of modern civilization in fields as diverse as medicine, electronics, aerospace, construction, food packaging, and sports. It is now clear, however, that plastics are also responsible for significant harms to human health, the economy, and the earth’s environment. These harms occur at every stage of the plastic life cycle, from extraction of the coal, oil, and gas that are its main feedstocks through to ultimate disposal into the environment. The extent of these harms not been systematically assessed, their magnitude not fully quantified, and their economic costs not comprehensively counted.
Goals: The goals of this Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health are to comprehensively examine plastics’ impacts across their life cycle on: (1) human health and well-being; (2) the global environment, especially the ocean; (3) the economy; and (4) vulnerable populations—the poor, minorities, and the world’s children. On the basis of this examination, the Commission offers science-based recommendations designed to support development of a Global Plastics Treaty, protect human health, and save lives.
Conclusions: It is now clear that current patterns of plastic production, use, and disposal are not sustainable and are responsible for significant harms to human health, the environment, and the economy as well as for deep societal injustices.
The main driver of these worsening harms is an almost exponential and still accelerating increase in global plastic production. Plastics’ harms are further magnified by low rates of recovery and recycling and by the long persistence of plastic waste in the environment. The thousands of chemicals in plastics—monomers, additives, processing agents, and non-intentionally added substances—include amongst their number known human carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, neurotoxicants, and persistent organic pollutants. These chemicals are responsible for many of plastics’ known harms to human and planetary health. The chemicals leach out of plastics, enter the environment, cause pollution, and result in human exposure and disease. All efforts to reduce plastics’ hazards must address the hazards of plastic-associated chemicals.
Purpose
Landfilling can result in a loss in revenue that would otherwise have been accrued from recycling plastic waste, loss in potential jobs, and groundwater contamination. Plastics in landfills may also eventually find their way into marine environments, where they can be damaging to animals. This work aims to establish the environmental sustainability of current plastic waste management practices in South Africa using the City of Johannesburg (CoJ) as a case study.
Methodology
Five scenarios encompassing combinations of landfilling, mechanical recycling, incineration with energy recovery, gasification, and use of plastic waste in a cement kiln were assessed through an environmental Life Cycle Assessment (e-LCA). Scenarios were developed based on an extensive literature review, current practices in South Africa and Europe, and the country’s National Waste Management strategy, which aims to achieve “zero waste to landfill”. SimaPro 9.1.1 software and the Ecoinvent Database were used to assess the life cycle impacts of each scenario over seven impact categories. The ReCiPe endpoint method, Egalitarian version, was employed in determining the impact potentials. A sensitivity analysis was also carried out to evaluate the model’s robustness.
Results and discussion
Overall, the impact assessment results, including damage assessments and single score results, revealed that moving away from landfilling and combining mechanical recycling, incineration, gasification, and use of plastic waste (PW) as solid refuse fuel in a cement kiln is the least environmentally impactful scenario when managing plastic waste. Landfilling alone was the worst-performing scenario, resulting in adverse effects on human health, ecosystems, and resource depletion. This agrees with the waste hierarchy. On sensitivity analysis, the increase in transportation distances and reduction in market substitution factor in mechanical recycling did not change the ranking of scenarios despite reducing the net benefits to the environment. Including open dumping as an end-of-life scenario significantly increased the negative impact of the current plastic waste management scenario being practised in South Africa, while assuming a 100% mechanical recycling rate had the least environmental impact when compared to the other modelled scenarios.
Conclusions
The current plastic waste management practices in South Africa were found to be environmentally unsustainable based on the modelled scenarios, and a move away from landfilling is encouraged. The outcomes of this study will assist policymakers and other stakeholders in making informed decisions based on scientific evidence when formulating sustainability-related waste management policies.
Europe has increased its production, processing, and export of vegetables in recent decades due to changing dietary patterns supporting a greater consumption of vegetables high in nutrition. The growing interest in environmental issues has led to advocacy for sustainable vegetable production and consumption. Thus, this study assessed the ecological impacts of producing 1 kg of frozen spinach (functional unit) by a food processor in central Italy (cradle-to-factory gate approach). We evaluated the global warming potential (GWP) for distributing the final to different destinations. We also compare the potential environmental credits for different spinach residue management strategies, residue reduction through improved process efficiency, and as a feedstock for biogas production (avoided maize silage) based on the total volatile solids content. The life cycle assessment was used following the CML_IA impact assessment method based mainly on primary data related to 2019/2020. The GWP was 1.55 kg CO2eq. with respect to the functional unit. Excluding the dominant cultivation phase, packaging, particularly corrugated board boxes, electricity, and wastewater treatment were significant contributors across the midpoint impact categories assessed. The GWP for distributing the packaged frozen to Australia was 24 times more impactful than regional inland distribution. When spinach residue is reduced to 20% and 10%, total impacts for all impact categories also decrease by 12% and 22%, respectively. The benefit of using the current amount of spinach residue to produce biomethane was less than 7% across all impact categories except terrestrial ecotoxicity (13%). Therefore, reducing spinach waste along the processing line and efficient end-of-packaging life management through recycling and reuse by the manufacturer can considerably reduce the environmental impacts of frozen spinach.
The concept of sustainability is broadly used but lousily defined. Sustainability comprises several dimensions and it is still subject of many academic discussions. Nevertheless, less ambitious approaches enable the possibility to quantify the environmental and socio-economic impacts of any product or service. A powerful and well defined tool (regulated by ISO14040 and ISO14044 standards) is Life Cycle Assessment: its methodology and main phases (definition of functional unit and scope, life cycle inventory, impact assessment and interpretation) are explained in this chapter with a focus on the assessment of energy technologies, and including a summary of the most used Life Cycle Impact Assessment methodologies that are currently available. A broader approach towards life cycle “sustainability” assessment requires the inclusion of tools to evaluate socio-economic impacts, such as life cycle costing and total cost of ownership, levelized cost of the produced energy or product environmental footprint that are also presented in this chapter.
Rapeseed is the dominant feedstock for biodiesel production in Germany, however, significant decline in crop yields observed during the 2018 drought in Europe pose economic and environmental risks for its sustained use as a fuel crop. Many Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies were conducted to quantify the potential environmental impacts of biodiesel production; however, only a few studies have considered the spatial and temporal heterogeneities of the studied regions. Furthermore, previous studies have usually only focused on the GHG savings of biodiesel and have ignored the environmental burden and economic profits of biodiesel production. For the first time, we combined the Regional Environmental LCA model with an economic analysis to evaluate both the environmental impact and the economic benefits of biodiesel production in Central Germany (CG). Our results showed that emissions from rapeseed cultivation were the largest contributor to both global and regional environmental impact categories. In our study region, we found that GHG emissions were around 56% to 71% lower for rapeseed-based biodiesel than for fossil fuels. Due to the drought in 2018, we also observed that the regional rapeseed supply could not meet the demand of biodiesel production in CG. An economic analysis of biodiesel production found significant economies of scales effect in the biodiesel industry. In addition, none of the studied biodiesel plants were able to operate at their designed installed capacities without causing indirect land use change. Furthermore, the profitability of biodiesel production was closely related to the feedstock cultivation cost. Based on these findings, we concluded that a regionalized LCA model would be able to more accurately evaluate the environmental influence of biodiesel production by taking site-specific conditions into consideration. We also suggest that potential biodiesel plant operators take the regional biodiesel production density and feedstock cultivation conditions into account when deciding on plant size.
This chapter gives an overview of the opportunities and benefits of implementing life cycle assessment (LCA) in circular economy (CE) evaluation. The CE has been designed to create value for both economic and social life by redefining the concept of end-of-life for products through reduce, reuse, and recycle programs. As this strategy is becoming more widespread, it is necessary to scientifically assess how the products or processes effectively correspond to CE and what improvements may arise in terms of the environment and economy. Robust environmental assessment tools, such as LCA, can be beneficial for assessing the success of CE strategies by companies, product designers, and sustainability teams, as well as consumers, since a closed loop system is not always the preferred method from an environmental viewpoint. The combination of LCA and CE can result in more in-depth analysis and better understanding of economic, social, and environmental sustainability.
Environmental sustainability continues to attract global interest, especially due to the issue of climate change. The agri-food sector is considered a major contributor to climate change as processes and activities within the sector can negatively impact the environment. The recent changing dietary pattern towards increased vegetable consumption implies a consequent increase in production to meet demand. This study assessed the environmental performance of 1 kg of spinach/FU (Functional Unit) cultivated by different producers in Italy under integrated and organic farming systems. The life cycle assessment was used following the CML_IA impact assessment method. The data used was mainly primary, related to 2019/2020 (harvest period), and representative of the cultivation systems of central and southern Italy. From the results obtained, impact scores for central Italy were higher (e.g., for global warming 0.56 and 0.47 kg CO2 eq. for central and southern respectively). There was high variability among the scores obtained. However, no statistically significant differences were observed at a confidence level of 95% (p < 0.05). Integrated farming was also more impacting than organic for most categories (e.g., for global warming 0.20 kg CO2 eq. for integrated and 0.075 kg CO2 eq. for organic) in Cerignola, Puglia region. Emissions from fertilizer, pesticide, tillage, and combine harvesting were major contributors to impact shares. The results of this study will be helpful to ensure sustainable spinach production and consumption.
Plastic pollution is among the many socio-economic and environmental dilemmas that have engulfed Pakistan. The exponentially increasing consumption of plastic and the difficulty of dealing with its waste has compelled the government to impose a ban on the use of non-biodegradable plastics. This ban has made Pakistan the 128th country to curb plastic usage through punitive measures. However, the country lacks cheap and sustainable alternatives for plastic bags and bottles, which form the most significant chunk of plastic waste. This research study aims to analyze and propose alternatives that can replace these plastic bags and bottles without compromising the lifestyle of citizens. The aim of this study is two-fold; first, it employs Fuzzy VIKOR, a Multi-Criteria Decision-Making technique for comparison and prioritization of alternatives, i.e., Conventional Plastic bags, Paper bags, and Bioplastic bags, with respect to multiple aspects of sustainability. Secondly, it performs a cost–benefit analysis of a Bioplastic plant, with a focus on the production of biodegradable plastic bottles. The MCDM analysis prioritized the bioplastic bags, followed by paper bags and the least preferable alternative turned out to be conventional plastic bags. The cost–benefit analysis indicated that although the production of bioplastic bottles instead of conventional plastic bottles would lead to the reduction of detrimental environmental impacts, however, currently it is not financially profitable for the industrialists to switch to bioplastics. Therefore, it is recommended that government authorities should incorporate carbon taxes and subsidize the sustainable development sector, which would, in turn, lead to the reduction of plastic consumption and waste in society.
With the explosion of the global population, the production of solid waste and wastewater is also explosively increasing, which has brought tremendous pressure on the environment and needs to be solved urgently. As an effective method to assess production efficiency and overall environmental impact of products, a life-cycle assessment (LCA) has been widely applied in enterprises to optimize production and management structures as well as government policy formulation. A large amount of research has also been conducted on the LCA of wastewater and solid waste treatment technology, which not only involves the study of kinds of solid waste and wastewater treatments, but also includes the analysis of drug inventory and plants to form a more comprehensive and complete LCA research. This chapter aims to investigate the application of LCA in solid waste and wastewater treatment, to check on the nature of issues arising at different periods during the management and underlying quantitative and qualitative environmental assessments. This study systematically and critically reviews the requirements behind the operation with the life cycle view and available treatment methodologies including mechanical and thermal, as well as biological technologies including composting, anaerobic digestion, and landfilling. This critical study will surely help the readers to better understand the role of LCA in the integrated solid waste and wastewater management. The involvement of LCA in the integrated system of waste management planning provides a clear-cut view of the environmental disparities caused during the life cycle of solid waste and wastewater management technologies.
To determine the environmentally-benign process between the carbonate melt flue gas desulfurization (CMFGD) and the conventional process as the process of removing SO2 from the flue gas, in this paper, a life cycle assessment is applied using the data derived from the process simulation, including the heat integration methodology. The CMFGD process has a 14.4% - 26.8% lower environmental impact than the conventional process on all indicators. To achieve the economic and environmental benefits of the CMFGD process, a heat exchanger network (HEN) is introduced using HI to use the heat wasted in the CMFGD process. The HEN reduces environmental impacts (i.e., reduced CC by 24.46%, and PM by 49.96%), and economics (reduced total levelized cost by 0.8%) compared to the CMFGD process before HI. These results suggest that the CMFGD process can replace the conventional methods to remove SO2 from the flue gas and can have environmental benefits by reducing CC and PM, significantly influencing the atmosphere.
Herein, we utilised Loquat seed oil as a waste resource to produce biodiesel over a novel bifunctional catalyst system based on CaO loaded on a ceria oxide support. The catalysts were characterised using XRD, SEM-EDX, SBET STEM, and TPD analyses, followed by parametric analysis to optimise the catalyst performance. The XPS analysis showed a strong synergistic effect between CaO and CeO2 support. The parametric study revealed that the most active catalyst (15 wt% CaO-CeO2) showed optimum biodiesel yield was 90.14 (±0.1) wt% at a temperature of 70 °C, methanol: oil of 9, time of 90 min and 4 wt% of catalyst. The reusability test showed that when the most active catalyst was calcined and reused, the biodiesel yield was almost the same ±0.5%; however, when biodiesel production was used without calcination, the biodiesel yield was reduced by 15%. The quality of the produced biodiesel was investigated by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and European Union (EU) Standards. It showed that it satisfied all standards and could be used as potential alternative fuel instead of fossil diesel from novel Loquat seed oil. The Life cycle Assessment (LCA) was condcuted to assess environmental feasibility of the process with 1000 kg of biodiesel as 1 functional unit (FU). The LCA using midpoint indicators (from CML-IA baseline V3.06 method) showed the cumulative abiotic depletion of fossil resources over the entire process of biodiesel production was 26349 MJ, global warming potential was 1129 kg CO2 eq, and human health toxicity was 422 kg 1,4-DB eq (kg 1,4 dichlorobenzene equivalent) per FU. The highest damage in most environmental categories was observed during catalyst preparation and regeneration. This was confirmed in endpoint LCA findings (ReCiPe 2016 Endpoint (E) V1.04), where catalyst preparation contributed to human health (119.2 Point (Pt)), ecosystems damage (9.3 Pt) and resources depletion (0.5 Pt). Furthermore, the net energy ratio was 2.23 for the biodiesel production process (computed as output energy/input energy) by considering allocation of output energy due to biodiesel and glycerol.
Biomass is an important renewable resource commonly used to derive energy for various applications. This study analyses the environmental impacts of biomass utilisation and conversion including pyrolysis and bio-oil hydrotreatment. The analysis was performed on 70 biomass samples using process simulation software and Waste Reduction (WAR) algorithm. Results showed that energy content, yield, product distribution and the environmental impacts are highly influenced by the lignocellulosic (cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin) and elemental (carbon, hydrogen, oxygen) compositions of biomass. Lignin-dominant biomass is found to produce char-dominant products whilst severely affecting two of the environmental impact categories, and cellulose-dominant biomass contributes mostly to six other impact categories whilst producing oil-dominant products. Hemicellulose-dominant samples produce gas-rich products with mild environmental impacts. Moreover, carbon- and hydrogen-rich samples exhibit positive relationship with higher heating value whilst oxygen-rich biomass have lower heating values. Such correlations were systematically presented on a Piper diagram in order to distinguish the potential and impacts of each biomass sample in pyrolysis. Albeit green, not all biomass samples are environmentally friendly during pyrolysis. The developed Piper diagram provides a straightforward, yet comprehensive, understanding, characterisation and illustration of the potential of biomass in achieving specific engineering, economics and environmental objectives based on fundamental characteristics of biomass.
Assessing the comprehensive performance of coal chemical wastewater process is an intricate and important task due to different biochemical treatment technologies. In this work, a 3E triangle model is developed to evaluate biochemical and advanced treatment technologies for zero liquid discharge of fix-bed coal gasification wastewater treatment process. In 3E triangle model, 19 key performance indicators are considered. In engineering performance aspect, up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor case shows the best performance. In the life cycle environmental impact aspect, sequence batch reactor case shows the best performance through life cycle assessment, especially freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity potential and global warming potential. Generally, due to the higher fixed cost and power consumption of other technologies, the depreciation and variable cost of up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor case are lower. Overall, the up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor case shows excellent performance in 3E comprehensive performance. In addition, membrane bioreactor has better development prospects and its weight has a greatest impact which COD removal accounts for the majority.
BACKGROUND
Growing population demands more animal protein products. Pork remains one of the traditional and relatively sustainable types of meats for human consumption. In this paper, life‐cycle assessment was performed using data from 12 pig farms. In parallel, a survey on the consumption of pork meat products was conducted analyzing responses from 806 pork meat consumers. The study aims to provide a quantitative calculation of six environmental footprints associated with the consumption of pork meat products in Serbia by analyzing data from pig farms and a pork meat consumption survey.
RESULTS
Results revealed that pork meat production is responsible for the emission of 3.50 kg CO2e kg⁻¹ live weight, 16.1 MJe kg⁻¹, 0.151 mg R11e kg⁻¹, 31.257 g SO2e kg⁻¹, 55.030 g PO4e kg⁻¹ and 3.641 kg 1.4 dBe kg⁻¹. Further calculations reveal that weekly emissions of various environmental potentials associated with an average consumer of pork meat products in Serbia are estimated at values of 4.032 kg CO2e week⁻¹, 18.504 MJe week⁻¹, 0.17435 mg R11e week⁻¹, 35.972 g SO2e week⁻¹ and 63.466 g PO4e week⁻¹.
CONCLUSIONS
Results show that, on the one hand, pork products are responsible for environmental production impacts that mainly occur on farms while, on the other hand, consumption is characterized with high meat inclusion rates. As a leverage strategy it is recommended for producers to concentrate on lowering the production impacts rather than trying to reach consumers for sustainability conciseness. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry
To promote bamboo use for charcoal production, environmental impacts and financial profitability of producing 1 MJ energy of charcoal from bamboo - Bambusa balcooa in comparison with two commonly used local species - Anogeissus leiocarpus and Senna siamea were analyzed. Environmental impacts were assessed using the life cycle analytical (LCA) approach while financial viability of the various systems was evaluated using the financial benefit cost ratio (FBCR) and net present value (NPV). Emissions from all the charcoal production stages were calculated using GaBi 4 LCA software and the Ecoinvent V3 and Idemat 2015 life cycle inventory databases. Emission contributions from all four stages in the charcoal production cycle were analyzed using the CML 2001 method. Environmental impacts were analyzed based on the potential for global warming, atmospheric acidification, eutrophication, depletion of abiotic resources, human toxicity, ozone layer depletion and eco-toxicity. The LCA revealed that compared with S. siamea and A. leiocarpus, production of charcoal from B. balcooa (bamboo) was the more environmentally friendly option after S. siamea, recording lower in five out of the seven (86%) impact categories used in the LCA. This was attributed to the relatively low use of chemical inputs (fertilizer, pesticides, fossil fuel etc.) in the bamboo charcoal production cycle. Nonetheless, the financial analysis revealed that despite recording the lowest production cost, charcoal production from B. balcooa was least profitable (FBCR=1.1) compared with the two traditional species. This was primarily due to the low market price of bamboo charcoal in the study region. While bamboo charcoal may be encouraged for purposes of environmental sustainability, increased sensitization on the economic potential of bamboo charcoal and the environmental benefits it brings may improve local adoption and market value.
Benzene and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are toxic air pollutants that have long been associated with motor vehicle emissions, though the importance of such emissions has never been quantified over an extended domain using a chemical transport model. Herein we present the first application of such a model (GEM-MACH-PAH) to examine the contribution of motor vehicles to benzene and PAHs in ambient air. We have applied the model over a region that is centred on Toronto, Canada, and includes much of southern Ontario and the northeastern United States. The resolution (2.5 km) was the highest ever employed by a model for these compounds in North America, and the model domain was the largest at this resolution in the world to date. Using paired model simulations that were run with vehicle emissions turned on and off (while all other emissions were left on), we estimated the absolute and relative contributions of motor vehicles to ambient pollutant concentrations. Our results provide estimates of motor vehicle contributions that are realistic as a result of the inclusion of atmospheric processing, whereas assessing changes in benzene and PAH emissions alone would neglect effects caused by shifts in atmospheric oxidation and particle–gas partitioning. A secondary benefit of our scenario approach is in its utility in representing a fleet of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), whose adoption is being encouraged in a variety of jurisdictions. Our simulations predicted domain-average on-road vehicle contributions to benzene and PAH concentrations of 4 %–21 % and 14 %–24 % in the spring–summer and fall–winter periods, respectively, depending on the aromatic compound. Contributions to PAH concentrations up to 50 % were predicted for the Greater Toronto Area, and the domain maximum was simulated to be 91 %. Such contributions are substantially higher than those reported at the national level in Canadian emissions inventories, and they also differ from inventory estimates at the subnational scale in the US. Our model has been run at a finer spatial scale than reported in those inventories, and furthermore includes physico-chemical processing that alters pollutant concentrations after their release. The removal of on-road vehicle emissions generally led to decreases in benzene and PAH concentrations during both periods that were studied, though atmospheric processing (such as chemical reactions and changes to particle–gas partitioning) contributed to non-linear behaviour at some locations or times of year. Such results demonstrate the added value associated with regional air quality modelling relative to examinations of emissions inventories alone. We also found that removing on-road vehicle emissions reduced spring–summertime surface O3 volume mixing ratios and fall–wintertime PM10 concentrations each by ∼10 % in the model domain, providing further air quality benefits. Toxic equivalents contributed by vehicle emissions of PAHs were found to be substantial (20 %–60 % depending on location), and this finding is particularly relevant to the study of public health in the urban areas of our model domain where human population, ambient concentrations, and traffic volumes tend to be high.
Sewage sludge treatment and disposal are critical global issues, with concerns including sludge volume/weight, release of pollutants, and other environmental impacts. This study develops a semi-quantitative assessment methodology for selecting appropriate sludge treatment options on the basis of a lifecycle assessment approach. Various biological, chemical, thermal, and thermo-chemical sludge treatment methods described in the literature are reviewed and evaluated holistically by adopting the developed methodology to determine their comparative effectiveness in reducing sludge volume/weight and environmental impacts. Anaerobic digestion, pyrolysis, and supercritical water oxidation are found to be the best-performing treatment methods. They are not only more effective in reducing sludge volume/weight and pollutants but also have lower global warming and toxicity potential compared to most of the other methods reviewed. The potential for adverse environmental effects remains owing to the release of pollutants when the products of sludge treatment are utilised, e.g. as soil amendments or fuel. This necessitates further investigation to explore the toxicity impacts of a wider array of emerging pollutants from a lifecycle perspective as well as further development of sludge treatment methods to overcome the drawbacks of existing methods.
The energy production from biomass through thermochemical processes is a promising technology to reduce the negative environmental impact. This study evaluates the environmental effects of the use of different Mexican biomasses (castor husk, coffee pulp and Pinus sawdust) on the combustion and gasification processes applied to energy production. The objective was to carry out the environmental and economic analysis associated with the generation of 1 MJ of energy for three proposals to determine which biomass is better to use as a raw material, which process is more respectful with the environment and economically viable. The life cycle assessment analysis showed that the combustion process is less harmful to the environment than the gasification process. In addition, for the two thermochemical processes studied, it was observed that the equipment that most damaged the environment was the Rankine cycle due to the emissions released and the energy consumed. Therefore, the coffee pulp was identified as the biomass with the most negative impact for both processes and the Pinus sawdust as the one that least affects the environment. The energy production through combustion process is more economically viable than the gasification, but both processes can be considered highly competitive for the biomass valorization.
Most former methods for the impact assessment of toxic releases in LCA gave a relative yardstick for the potential toxic effect of a substance, with no allowance being made for intermedia transport and degradation. These factors may be of major influence on the degree of (eco)toxic effects to be expected. As part of its work on substance policy, RIVM has developed a computer model calledUniform System for the Evaluation of Substances (USES) to assess, as realistically as possible, the degree to which the no-effect level is transgressed in practice. This model makes allowances for the fate of substances in the environment.
An important offspring of the project is not only that substance assessment has been linked to the LCA method, but also that it shows LCA users how they can establish the LCA equivalency factors for the (eco)toxicity of “unknown” substances by themselves, and how they can recalculate the equivalency factors that were reported from the project. This last point is particularly of interest because the new list of equivalency factors suffers from serious uncertainties due to data gaps.
Lastly, some future perspectives as to further modelling activities is discussed, in particular with respect to a generic fate model for all emission-related impact types.
Based on imperfect data and theory, agencies such as the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) currently derive “reference doses” (RfDs) to guide risk managers charged with ensuring that human exposures to chemicals are below population thresholds. The RfD for a chemical is typically reported as a single number, even though it is widely acknowledged that there are significant uncertainties inherent in the derivation of this number.In this article, the authors propose a probabilistic alternative to the EPA's method that expresses the human population threshold as a probability distribution of values (rather than a single RfD value), taking into account the major sources of scientific uncertainty in such estimates. The approach is illustrated using much of the same data that USEPA uses to justify their current RfD procedure.Like the EPA's approach, our approach recognizes the four key extrapolations that are necessary to define the human population threshold based on animal data: animal to human, human heterogeneity, LOAEL to NOAEL, and subchronic to chronic. Rather than using available data to define point estimates of “uncertainty factors” for these extrapolations, the proposed approach uses available data to define a probability distribution of adjustment factors. These initial characterizations of uncertainty can then be refined when more robust or specific data become available for a particular chemical or class of chemicals.Quantitative characterization of uncertainty in noncancer risk assessment will be useful to risk managers who face complex trade-offs between control costs and protection of public health. The new approach can help decision-makers understand how much extra control cost must be expended to achieve a specified increase in confidence that the human population threshold is not being exceeded.
The report is describing the general principles and default methodology of the EPS system. The system principles and methodology is based on earlier versions of the EPS system, in particular the version 1996. The present version has been given the number 2000. In comparison with the 1996 version the basic principles are the same, but the description is more detailed and the ISO standard language is adopted.
In contrast to the various “potential impact” indices that have been proposed, we show that indices for real damage can be
derived, based on the impact pathway methodology which involves the calculation of increased pollutant concentration in all
affected regions due to an incremental emission (e.g. μg/m3 of particles, using models of atmospheric dispersion and chemistry), followed by the calculation of physical impacts (e.g.
number of cases of asthma due to these particles, using a concentration-response function). The numbers are summed over all
receptors of concern (population, crops, buildings,…). We show that in a uniform world (linear dose-response function, uniform
receptor density and uniform atmospheric removal rate) the conservation of matter implies a very simple formula for the total
damage. The generalization to secondary pollutants is straightforward. By detailed numerical evaluations, using real data
for atmospheric dispersion and geographic receptor distribution, we have demonstrated that this simple formula is an excellent
representation of typical damages. Results are shown for the principal air pollutants emitted by smoke stacks of industrial
installations or by road transport.
The Eco-Indicator 98 project aims at a complete revision of the Eco-Indicator 95 methodology. Like its predecessor, the target
is to develop single scores for designers. The method now includes resources and land use. Important improvements are: the
use of fate analysis, the much better definition of the damage categories concerned with human health and ecosystem health,
using the PAF (Potentially Affected Fraction) and DALY (Disability Adjusted Life Years) concept, and a completely new approach
to modelling resources and land use. Perhaps the most fundamental improvement is the management system for value choices.
The result of this management system is that there will be three instead of one indicator. Each version is based on a different
cultural perspective. The method should be updated continuously. It is proposed to set up an independent organisation to guide
this future development.
From a review of existing correlations for KP the partition coefficient of semi-volatile organic chemicals (SOCs) between aerosol and gaseous phases, it is suggested that the octanol-air partition coefficient (KOA) may be a valuable direct descriptor of SOCs volatility and may be preferable to the use of the experimentally inaccessible subcooled liquid-vapor pressure. Successful two parameter correlations are developed between log KP and log KOA, and an even simpler one parameter correlation is suggested that the ratio is approximately constant for a class of SOCs.
Preface. 1. Introduction to Life Cycle Assessment and its Positioning. 2. Shift of Paradigm - Propositions - Objectives. 3. Modelling the Valuesphere by Cultural Theory. 4. Modelling the Ecosphere by the Structured Aggregation Procedure. 5. Dalys - An Index for Human Health Assessment. 6. Damage to Human Health From Environmental Chemicals that Cause Cancer. 7. Damage to Human Health from Respiratory Effects. 8. Perfection of the Framework. 9. Results and Discussion. 10. Conclusions. Appendices. References. Subject Index.
Environmental Chemicals Desk Reference is a concise version of the widely read Agrochemicals Desk Reference and Groundwater Chemicals Desk Reference. This up-to-date volume was inspired by the need for a combination of the material in both references, together with the large number of research publications and the continued interest in the fate, transport, and remediation of hazardous substances. Much new data has been added to this unique edition, including global legislation (REACH) and sustainability, thereby reflecting the wealth of literature in the field. Featured are environmental and physical/chemical data on more than 200 compounds, including pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides.
The book provides, in a single source, hazard-analysis information for nearly 13,000 common industrial and laboratory materials. New sections have been added to this edition to refiect the increased interest in pollution and health hazards. For public, academic and special libraries. -- AATA
Multimedia, multiple pathway exposure models are used in the CalTOX model to estimate average daily doses within a human population in the vicinity of a hazardous-substances-release site. The models encompass twenty-three exposure pathways. This report describes these model and specifies methods, assumptions, and inputs for making exposure and dose assessments. The end product of an exposure assessment for contaminants at hazardous-waste sites is typically an estimation of the distribution of potential dose among the population whose air, water, and soil have been contaminated by the hazardous-waste-substances-release site. The exposure analysis begins with the assumption that, through models or measurements, concentrations are available for ambient air (gas and particle phases), surface water, ground water, surface soil, and root-zone soil at a hazardous-waste-substances-release site. The exposure-assessment process consists of relating contaminant concentrations in these environmental media to contaminant concentrations in the media with which a human population has contact (personal air, tap water, foods, household dusts, soils, etc.). The average daily dose is the product of the exposure concentrations in these contact media and an intake or uptake factor that relates the concentrations to the distributions of potential dose within the population.
Information is compiled on more than 135 compounds that may be groundwater pollutants. The compounds profiled include all the Priority Pollutants promulgated by the US EPA under the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1977. Many of these priority pollutants were included among the Target Compounds promulgated by the EPA under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) in 1980 and the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986. All chemicals described in the book are classified as priority pollutants and/or target compounds. For each chemical, the following information is given: (1) synonyms; (2) structural formula; (3) CAS Registry number; (4) DOT designation; (5) empirical formula; (6) formula weight; (7) RETCS number; (8) physical and chemical properties; (9) fire hazards; (10) health hazard data; and (11) manufacturing data and/or selected manufacturers.
Completely revised and updated, Multimedia Environmental Models: The Fugacity Approach, Second Edition continues to provide simple techniques for calculating how chemicals behave in the environment, where they accumulate, how long they persist, and how this leads to human exposure. The book develops, describes, and illustrates the framework and procedures for calculating the behavior of chemicals in our multimedia environment of air, water, soil, and sediments, as well as the diversity of biota that reside in these media. While other books focus on specific compartments, such as the atmosphere, or specific substances, such as PCBs, this book presents the big picture of how organic chemicals behave in the total environment. It does this by providing examples of calculation methods based on the fugacity approach and explaining how to access up-to-date property databases and estimation methods as well as computer programs, which are available from the Internet. In addition, the models are Web based, instead of on a floppy disk as in the previous edition. Building on the work developed in the First Edition, the Second Edition includes: • A how-to modeling section, more worked examples and problems- most with solutions and answers • Expanded treatment of structure-activity relationships and modern estimation methods • More material illustrating applications to bioaccumulation is specific organisms and food webs • Emphasis on current efforts to identify PBT chemicals and exposure analysis as a component of risk assessment • Examples that provide each step of modeling calculations • Web-based models, and references to property databases, estimation methods, and computer programs from the Internet When you need to make assessments of chemical behavior you need current, comprehensive. Multimedia Environmental Models: The Fugacity Approach provides you with not only an understanding of how the multitude of organic chemicals behave in the total environment, but also with practical examples of how this behavior can be predicted using the fugacity approach.
This handbook presents simple estimation methods for 26 important properties of organic chemicals that are of environmental concern. This book facilitates the study of problematic chemicals in such applications as chemical fate modeling, environmental assessments, priority ranking of large lists of chemicals, chemical spill modeling, chemical process design, and experimental design.
CalTOX has been developed as a spreadsheet model to assist in health-risk assessments that address contaminated soils and the contamination of adjacent air, surface water, sediments, and ground water. The modeling effort includes a multimedia transport and transformation model, exposure scenario models, and efforts to quantify and reduce uncertainty in multimedia, multiple-pathway exposure models. This report provides an overview of the CalTOX model components, lists the objectives of the model, describes the philosophy under which the model was developed, identifies the chemical classes for which the model can be used, and describes critical sensitivities and uncertainties. The multimedia transport and transformation model is a dynamic model that can be used to assess time-varying concentrations of contaminants introduced initially to soil layers or for contaminants released continuously to air or water. This model assists the user in examining how chemical and landscape properties impact both the ultimate route and quantity of human contact. Multimedia, multiple pathway exposure models are used in the CalTOX model to estimate average daily potential doses within a human population in the vicinity of a hazardous substances release site. The exposure models encompass twenty-three exposure pathways. The exposure assessment process consists of relating contaminant concentrations in the multimedia model compartments to contaminant concentrations in the media with which a human population has contact (personal air, tap water, foods, household dusts soils, etc.). The average daily dose is the product of the exposure concentrations in these contact media and an intake or uptake factor that relates the concentrations to the distributions of potential dose within the population.
Twelve organic compounds commonly found at hazardous waste sites were studied for uptake by hybrid poplar trees. The vegetative uptake of many of these compounds has not previously been demonstrated for plant species being utilized for phytoremediation, such as hybrid poplar trees. Experiments were conducted hydroponically utilizing 14C-labeled compounds to ascertain translocation and fate. Predictive relationships for the translocation and partitioning to plant tissues were developed from the experimental data. Translocation and partitioning relationships based on compounds' octanol−water partitioning coefficients (log Kow) produced the best results, but the relationships did not allow for fully accurate prediction of each contaminant's fate. Translocation and subsequent transpiration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the leaves to the atmosphere was shown to be a significant pathway. As full-scale phytoremediation systems are deliberated, the pathways investigated here should be considered in terms of a contaminant removal mechanism and potential contamination of the vegetation.
An analysis was conducted that tested the usefulness of four methods- toxicity-based scoring, sustainable process index, concentration/toxicity equivalency, and human toxicity potential-for assessing human health impacts of chemical emissions. Each assessment method uses a different model with varying levels of complexity and sophistication to calculate a toxic equivalency potential. This indicator is a ratio that expresses human health risks associated with release of a toxic chemical relative to those of an equivalent, equally toxic release of a reference chemical. Predicted impacts of the compared toxicants depend on whether and how exposure is considered by each evaluation method. Relative toxicity scores produced by these methods vary by 3 orders of magnitude when the same compounds are analyzed; thus, method selection is critical. The human toxicity potential method is preferred for comparing toxic emissions. Of the four methods investigated, it incorporates the most comprehensive approach to exposure assessment. Pollutants are ranked on the basis of health risks, assessed by using an explicit characterization of total human exposure to a toxicant.
The uptake by roots from solution, and subsequent translocation to shoots in barley, of two series of non-ionised chemicals, O-methylcarbamoyloximes and substituted phenylureas, were measured, Uptake of the chemicals by roots was greater the more lipophilic the chemical, and fell to a lower limiting value for polar chemicals. Translocation to the shoots was a passive process, and was most efficient for compounds of intermediate polarity. Both processes had reached equilibrium within 24h of treatment. The reported behaviour of many pesticides in various plant species agrees with the derived relationships, but the detailed mechanisms of these processes are unknown.
A five-stage process is described for obtaining an understanding of the fate of a substance after discharge to the environment and for predicting the concentrations to which organisms in various environmental media will be exposed. These five stages are: classifying the substance as to its chemical type and collecting the appropriate physical, chemical, and reactivity data based on this classification; obtaining information on the substance's past, present, and/or proposed production, use, and discharges and, if appropriate, background concentrations; conducting an evaluative fate assessment with the objective of determining the general features of the substance's behavior; conducting a regional or far-field fate evaluation using regional climatic and geographic conditions, to determine the role of environmental conditions on the substance's behavior and estimate average regional concentrations; and conducting one or more local or near-field evaluations on points of entry and other potentially impacted sites to predict the exposure concentration. With this information on fate, risk can be assessed by comparing predicted environmental concentrations with no-effect concentrations. This paper contains a detailed discussion of stage 1 (classification into one of five categories) and a discussion of how multimedia models can be used to conduct the evaluative (stage 3), regional (stage 4), and near-field (stage 5) assessments.
Multimedia fate and exposure models are widely used to regulate the release of toxic chemicals, to set cleanup standards for contaminated sites, and to evaluate emissions in life-cycle assessment. CalTOX, one of these models, is used to calculate the potential dose, an outcome that is combined with the toxicity of the chemical to determine the Human Toxicity Potential (HTP), used to aggregate and compare emissions. The comprehensive assessment of the uncertainty in the potential dose calculation in this article serves to provide the information necessary to evaluate the reliability of decisions based on the HTP. A framework for uncertainty analysis in multimedia risk assessment is proposed and evaluated with four types of uncertainty. Parameter uncertainty is assessed through Monte Carlo analysis. The variability in landscape parameters is assessed through a comparison of potential dose calculations for different regions in the United States. Decision rule uncertainty is explored through a comparison of the HTP values under open and closed system boundaries. Model uncertainty is evaluated through two case studies, one using alternative formulations for calculating the plant concentration and the other testing the steady state assumption for wet deposition. This investigation shows that steady state conditions for the removal of chemicals from the atmosphere are not appropriate and result in an underestimate of the potential dose for 25% of the 336 chemicals evaluated.
Current LCA practice is mass oriented, i.e. is focused on the amount of chemicals released, disregarding place and time of
release. Life cycle impact assessment aims at evaluating potential impacts, and a variety of weighting schemes is discussed
to he used for ranking and aggregation of impacts. To establish a closer link between the quantity of a burden released and
a decision making context, we propose to follow a detailed impact pathway analysis to estimate actual impacts for some priority
impact categories, and use measured individuals’ preferences for impact valuation. Results from a case study illustrate the
relevance of site specific impact assessment in the context of LCA.
The purpose of the Benchmark Dose Workshop was to assess the feasibility and implications of replacing the no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) with a benchmark dose (BRID) when deriving reference doses and concentrations (RfDs and RfCs). The workshop participants supported the use of the BMD method to remove many of the limitations inherent in using the NOAEL approach, Participants endorsed in general the use of a BMD for all quantal noncancer health effects and endorsed in particular the BMD for assessing developmental toxicity based on data presented at the workshop. The discussions of implementation recognized the need to demonstrate that changing from a NOAEL to a BMD gives the risk manager more certain information on which to base decisions, Most participants agreed that the current NOAEL-derived RfDs and RfCs are sufficiently protective and should only be changed as data become available for estimating a BMD. It was recognized that to achieve general acceptance of the BMD approach, it will have to be applied to a variety of endpoints.
Life-cycle assessments are normally made without quantitative estimations of their uncertainty. More interest has been focused on sensitivity analysis. In ISO 14040, LCA standard and SETAC's ???code of practice??? sensitivity and uncertainty analysis are recommended or even requested. In the EPS system, an analysis of significance and sensitivity has been carried out for several years. The article describes this procedure in ISO terms and generalises it for other types of life-cycle assessments.
Quantitative life cycle assessment (lca) is a method allocating the environmental impacts of the whole life cycle of a product to the functioning of that product. The scientific basis of the method is still being elaborated. In this paper a proposal is made to improve the scientific basis of one specific step of the methods: the aggregation of potentially toxic emissions of substances in one score for human toxicity and two scores for ecotoxicity. The aggregation is based on multimedia environmental models of Mackay simulating the behaviour of substances in the environment, and on toxicity data such as acceptable resp. tolerable daily intake (adi resp. tdi) and no observed effect concentration (noec) per substance. It is proposed to apply models describing the environmental fate of toxic substances in lcas of products. In addition, it is proposed to adopt the concept of a reference substance, as used in the ozone depletion potential (odp) and the global warming potential (gwp), to assess and aggregate emissions of potentially toxic substances.
A three-compartment mass balance model of a plant is developed to quantify the uptake of organic chemicals from soil and the atmosphere. The compartments are as follows: root, stem, and foliage. The processes involved are diffusion and bulk flow of chemical between soil and root; transport within the plant in the phloem and transpiration streams between root, stem, and foliage; exchange between foliage and air and between soil and air; metabolism and growth. The model is applied to the uptake of Bromacil by the soybean from hydroponic solution, yielding results which compare favorably with experimental data. Illustrative applications to three other chemicals (2,4-D, dichlorobenzonitrile, and hexachlorobiphenyl) from soil are described showing that chemicals present in soil may reach foliage by evaporation from soil with subsequent foliar absorption and by transpiration, the proportions being determined by the chemical's Henry's law constant and octanol-water partition coefficient. The intent is to provide a method by which chemical concentrations in various plant tissues can be estimated from information on chemical properties, concentrations in soil and air, and plant physiology. Applications and data requirements for validation are discussed.
EDGAR G. HERTWICH Energy and Resources Group University of California Berkeley, CA 94720-3050 WILLIAM S. PEASE Environmental Defense Fund Oakland, CA 95616 THOMAS E. MCKONE Environmental Health Science University of California Berkeley, CA 94720-7360.
Vol. II comprende de la A-E y Vol. III de la F-Z
Two multimedia environmental transport and transformation computer models are summarized and compared. The regional fugacity model published by Mackay and Paterson (1991), termed Fug3ONT, is a four compartment steady-state model designed to simulate the relative distribution of nonionic organic chemicals in a multimedia system. CalTOX is a seven compartment multimedia total exposure model for hazardous waste sites. Both models are based on the principles of fugacity. CalTOX, however, separates the soil into three layers (surface, root, and vadose) and uses a different approach to estimate the diffusive mass transfer rate in soil. These differences result in lower estimates of the steady-state contaminant concentrations of six environmentally relevant chemicals in the root soil of CalTOX as compared to the bulk soil of Fug3ONT. The difference is greatest for compounds with low mobility in soil such as 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin and Benzo(a)pyrene where estimates from CalTOX and Fug3ONT differ by more than 3 orders of magnitude. Otherwise, the models provide similar estimates for the distribution of the six chemicals among the air, water, sediment and surface soil.
Several existing databases compiled by Gold et al. for carcinogenesis bioassays are examined to obtain estimates of the reproducibility of cancer rates across experiments, strains, and rodent species. A measure of carcinogenic potency is given by the TD50 (daily dose that causes a tumor type in 50% of the exposed animals that otherwise would not develop the tumor in a standard lifetime). The lognormal distribution can be used to model the uncertainty of the estimates of potency (TD50) and the ratio of TD50's between two species. For near-replicate bioassays, approximately 95% of the TD50's are estimated to be within a factor of 4 of the mean. Between strains, about 95% of the TD50's are estimated to be within a factor of 11 of their mean, and the pure genetic component of variability is accounted for by a factor of 6.8. Between rats and mice, about 95% of the TD50's are estimated to be within a factor of 32 of the mean, while between humans and experimental animals the factor is 110 for 20 chemicals reported by Allen et al. The common practice of basing cancer risk estimates on the most sensitive rodent species-strain-sex and using interspecies dose scaling based on body surface area appears to overestimate cancer rates for these 20 human carcinogens by about one order of magnitude on the average.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The human toxicity potential, a weighting scheme used to evaluate toxic emissions for life cycle assessment and toxics release inventories, is based on potential dose calculations and toxicity factors. This paper evaluates the variance in potential dose calculations that can be attributed to the uncertainty in chemical-specific input parameters as well as the variability in exposure factors and landscape parameters. A knowledge of the uncertainty allows us to assess the robustness of a decision based on the toxicity potential; a knowledge of the sources of uncertainty allows us to focus our resources if we want to reduce the uncertainty. The potential dose of 236 chemicals was assessed. The chemicals were grouped by dominant exposure route, and a Monte Carlo analysis was conducted for one representative chemical in each group. The variance is typically one to two orders of magnitude. For comparison, the point estimates in potential dose for 236 chemicals span ten orders of magnitude. Most of the variance in the potential dose is due to chemical-specific input parameters, especially half-lives, although exposure factors such as fish intake and the source of drinking water can be important for chemicals whose dominant exposure is through indirect routes. Landscape characteristics are generally of minor importance.
Toxicity potentials are standard values used in life cycle assessment (LCA) to enable a comparison of toxic impacts between substances. This paper presents the results of an uncertainty assessment of toxicity potentials that were calculated with the global nested multi-media fate, exposure and effects model USES-LCA. The variance in toxicity potentials resulting from input parameter uncertainties and human variability was quantified by means of Monte Carlo analysis with Latin Hypercube sampling (LHS). For Atrazine, 2,3,7,8-TCDD and Lead, variation, expressed by the ratio of the 97.5%-ile and the 2.5%-ile, ranges from about 1.5 to 6 orders of magnitude. The major part of this variation originates from a limited set of substance-specific input parameters, i.e. parameters that describe transport mechanisms, substance degradation, indirect exposure routes and no-effect concentrations. Considerable correlations were found between the toxicity potentials of one substance, in particular within one impact category. The uncertainties and correlations reported in the present study may have a significant impact on the outcome of LCA case studies.
Toxicity potentials are standard values used in life cycle assessment (LCA) to enable a comparison of toxic impacts between substances. In most cases, toxicity potentials are calculated with multi-media fate models. Until now, unrealistic system settings were used for these calculations. The present paper outlines an improved model to calculate toxicity potentials: the global nested multi-media fate, exposure and effects model USES-LCA. It is based on the Uniform System for the Evaluation of Substances 2.0 (USES 2.0). USES-LCA was used to calculate for 181 substances toxicity potentials for the six impact categories freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity, marine aquatic ecotoxicity, freshwater sediment ecotoxicity, marine sediment ecotoxicity, terrestrial ecotoxicity and human toxicity, after initial emission to the compartments air, freshwater, seawater, industrial soil and agricultural soil, respectively. Differences of several orders of magnitude were found between the new toxicity potentials and those calculated previously.
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Priority assessment of toxic substances in LCA II: Assessing parameter uncertainty and variability
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Toxic equivalency: Addressing human health effects in life-cycle impact assessment
- Hertwicheg
Hertwich EG. 1999. Toxic equivalency: Addressing human health effects in life-cycle impact assessment. PhD thesis. University of California, Berkeley, USA.
Priority assessment of toxic substances in LCA. I: Calculation of toxicity potentials for 181 substances
- Huijbregts
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Development and evaluation of state-specific landscape data sets for life-cycle analysis
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McKone TE, Bodnar A, Hertwich EG. 2000. Development and evaluation of state-specific landscape data sets for life-cycle anal-ysis. Report LBNL-43722. Lawrence Berkeley National Labo-ratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Inclusion of fate in LCA characterization of toxic releases applying USES 1
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Handbook of Environmental Degradation Updates
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Inclusion of fate in LCA characterization of toxic releases applying USES 1.0
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Priority assessment of toxic substances in LCA II: Assessing parameter uncertainty and variability
- Huijbregts
Parameter uncertainty and variability in evaluative fate and exposure models
- Hertwich
Guidelines for exposure assessment: Notice, Environmental Protection Agency
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Development and evaluation of state-specific landscape data sets for life-cycle analysis
- Mckonete Bodnara