Simplified fate modelling in respect to ecotoxicological and human toxicological characterisation of emissions of chemical compounds

Purpose  

The impact assessment of chemical compounds in Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) and Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) requires a vast amount of data on the properties of the chemical compounds being assessed. The purpose of the present study is to explore statistical options for reduction of the data demand associated with characterisation of chemical emissions in LCIA and ERA.     

Spatial Differentiation in the Characterisation of Photochemical Ozone Formation: The EDIP2003 Methodology

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1065/lca2006.04.014

Background, Aims and Scope

In the life cycle of a product, emissions take place at many different locations. The location of the source and its surrounding conditions influence the fate of the emitted pollutant and the subsequent exposure it causes. This source of variation is normally neglected in Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA), although it is well known that the impacts predicted by site-generic LCIA in some cases differ significantly from the actual impacts. Environmental impacts of photochemical ozone (ground-level ozone) depend on parameters with a considerable geographical variability (like emission patterns and population densities). A spatially differentiated characterisation model thus seems relevant.

Methods

and Results. The European RAINS model is applied for calculation of site-dependent characterisation factors for Non-Methane Volatile Organic Compounds (NMVOCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) for 41 countries or regions within Europe, and compatible characterisation factors for carbon monoxide (CO) are developed based on expert judgement. These factors are presented for three emission years (1990, 1995 and 2010), and they address human health impacts and vegetation impacts in two separate impacts categories, derived from AOT40 and AOT60 values respectively. Compatible site-generic characterisation factors for NMVOC, NOx, CO and methane (CH4) are calculated as emission-weighted European averages to be applied on emissions for which the location is unknown. The site-generic and site-dependent characterisation factors are part of the EDIP2003 LCIA methodology. The factors are applied in a specific case study, and it is demonstrated how the inclusion of spatial differentiation may alter the results of the photochemical ozone characterisation of life cycle impact assessment.

Discussion

and Conclusions. Compared to traditional midpoint characterisation modelling, this novel approach is spatially resolved and comprises a larger part of the cause-effect chain including exposure assessment and exceeding of threshold values. This positions it closer to endpoint modelling and makes the results easier to interpret. In addition, the developed model allows inclusion of the contributions from NOx, which are ne- glected when applying the traditional approaches based on Photochemical Ozone Creation Potentials (POCPs). The variation in site-dependent characterisation factors is far larger than the variation in POCP factors. It thus seems more important to represent the spatially determined variation in exposure than the difference in POCP among the substances.

     

Reviewing the potential for including habitat fragmentation to improve life cycle impact assessments for land use impacts on biodiversity

Purpose

The biosphere is progressively subjected to a variety of pressures resulting from anthropogenic activities. Habitat conversion, resulting from anthropogenic land use, is considered the dominant factor driving terrestrial biodiversity loss. Hence, adequate modelling of land use impacts on biodiversity in decision-support tools, like life cycle assessment (LCA), is a priority. State-of-the-art life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) characterisation models for land use impacts on biodiversity translate natural habitat transformation and occupation into biodiversity impacts. However, the currently available models predominantly focus on total habitat loss and ignore the spatial configuration of the landscape. That is, habitat fragmentation effects are ignored in current LCIAs with the exception of one recently developed method.

Methods

Here, we review how habitat fragmentation may affect biodiversity. In addition, we investigate how land use impacts on biodiversity are currently modelled in LCIA and how missing fragmentation impacts can influence the LCIA model results. Finally, we discuss fragmentation literature to evaluate possible methods to include habitat fragmentation into advanced characterisation models.

Results and discussion

We found support in available ecological literature for the notion that habitat fragmentation is a relevant factor when assessing biodiversity loss. Moreover, there are models that capture fragmentation effects on biodiversity that have the potential to be incorporated into current LCIA characterisation models.

Conclusions and recommendations

To enhance the credibility of LCA biodiversity assessments, we suggest that available fragmentation models are adapted, expanded and subsequently incorporated into advanced LCIA characterisation models and promote further efforts to capture the remaining fragmentation effects in LCIA characterisation models.

     

A method for improving Centre for Environmental Studies (CML) characterisation factors for metal (eco)toxicity — the case of zinc gutters and downpipes

Background, aim and scope  

The environmental impact of building products made from heavy metals has been a topic of discussion for some years. This was fuelled by results of life cycle assessments (LCAs), where the emission of heavy metals strongly effected the results. An issue was that the characterisation factors of the Centre for Environmental Studies (CML) 2000 life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methodology put too much emphasis on the impact of metal emissions. We adjusted Zn characterisation factors according to the most recent insights in the ecotoxicity of zinc and applied them in an LCA using zinc gutters and downpipes as an example.     

The role of atmospheric dispersion models and ecosystem sensitivity in the determination of characterisation factors for acidifying and eutrophying emissions in LCIA

Background, aim and scope  The methodological choices and framework to assess environmental impacts in life cycle assessment are still under discussion. Despite intensive developments worldwide, few attempts have been made hitherto to systematically present the role of different factors of characterisation models in life cycle impact assessment (LCIA). The aim of this study is to show how European average and country-dependent characterisation factors for acidifying and eutrophying emissions differ when using (a) acidifying and eutrophying potentials alone, (b) depositions from an atmospheric dispersion model or (c) critical loads in conjunction with those depositions. Furthermore, in the latter case, the contributions of emissions, an atmospheric transport model and critical loads to changes in characterisation factors of NO₂ are studied. In addition, the new characterisation factors based on the accumulated exceedance (AE) method are presented using updated emissions, a new atmospheric transport model and the latest critical loads. Materials and methods  In this study, characterisation factors for acidifying and eutrophying emissions are calculated by three different methods. In the ‘no fate’ (NF) methods, acidifying and eutrophying potentials alone are considered as characterisation factors. In the ‘only above terrestrial environment’ (OT) approach, characterisation factors are based on the deposition of the acidifying or eutrophying substances to terrestrial land surfaces. The third method is the so-called AE method in which critical loads are used in conjunction with depositions. The results of the methods are compared both at the European and the country level using weighted mean, weighted standard deviation, minimum and maximum values. To illustrate the sensitivity of the AE method, changes in European emissions, employed atmospheric dispersion model and the critical loads database are conducted step-by-step, and the differences between the results are analysed. Results and discussion  For European average characterisation factors, the three characterisation methods of acidification produce results in which the contributions of NH₃, NO₂ and SO₂ to the acidification indicator do not differ much within each method when 1 kg of each acidifying substance is emitted. However, the NF methods cannot describe any spatial aspects of environmental problems. Both OT and AE methods show that the spatial aspects play an important role in the characterisation factors. The AE method results in greater differentiations between country-dependent characterisation factors than does the OT method. In addition, the results of the AE and OT methods differ from each other for individual countries. A major shortcoming of the OT approach is that it does not consider the sensitivity of the ecosystems onto which the pollutants are deposited, whereas the AE approach does. In the case of the AE method, a new atmospheric dispersion model, new information on emissions and critical loads have a different influence on the characterisation factors, depending on the country. The results of statistics show that the change in the atmospheric dispersion model has a greatest influence on the results, since ecosystem-specific depositions are taken into account for the first time. Conclusions and recommendations  The simple NF methods can be used in a first approximation to assess the impacts of acidification and terrestrial eutrophication in cases where we do not know where the emissions occur. The OT approach is a more advanced method compared with the NF method, but its capability to describe spatial aspects is limited. The AE factors are truly impact-oriented characterisation factors and the information used here represents the current best knowledge about the assessment practice of acidification and terrestrial eutrophication in Europe. The key message of this study is that there is no shortcut to achieving advanced characterisation of acidification and terrestrial eutrophication: an advanced methodology cannot develop without atmospheric dispersion models and information on ecosystem sensitivity.     

The Glasgow consensus on the delineation between pesticide emission inventory and impact assessment for LCA

Purpose

Pesticides are applied to agricultural fields to optimise crop yield and their global use is substantial. Their consideration in life cycle assessment (LCA) is affected by important inconsistencies between the emission inventory and impact assessment phases of LCA. A clear definition of the delineation between the product system model (life cycle inventory—LCI, technosphere) and the natural environment (life cycle impact assessment—LCIA, ecosphere) is missing and could be established via consensus building.

Methods

A workshop held in 2013 in Glasgow, UK, had the goal of establishing consensus and creating clear guidelines in the following topics: (1) boundary between emission inventory and impact characterisation model, (2) spatial dimensions and the time periods assumed for the application of substances to open agricultural fields or in greenhouses and (3) emissions to the natural environment and their potential impacts. More than 30 specialists in agrifood LCI, LCIA, risk assessment and ecotoxicology, representing industry, government and academia from 15 countries and four continents, met to discuss and reach consensus. The resulting guidelines target LCA practitioners, data (base) and characterisation method developers, and decision makers.

Results and discussion

The focus was on defining a clear interface between LCI and LCIA, capable of supporting any goal and scope requirements while avoiding double counting or exclusion of important emission flows/impacts. Consensus was reached accordingly on distinct sets of recommendations for LCI and LCIA, respectively, recommending, for example, that buffer zones should be considered as part of the crop production system and the change in yield be considered. While the spatial dimensions of the field were not fixed, the temporal boundary between dynamic LCI fate modelling and steady-state LCIA fate modelling needs to be defined.

Conclusions and recommendations

For pesticide application, the inventory should report pesticide identification, crop, mass applied per active ingredient, application method or formulation type, presence of buffer zones, location/country, application time before harvest and crop growth stage during application, adherence with Good Agricultural Practice, and whether the field is considered part of the technosphere or the ecosphere. Additionally, emission fractions to environmental media on-field and off-field should be reported. For LCIA, the directly concerned impact categories and a list of relevant fate and exposure processes were identified. Next steps were identified: (1) establishing default emission fractions to environmental media for integration into LCI databases and (2) interaction among impact model developers to extend current methods with new elements/processes mentioned in the recommendations.

     

Weighting across safeguard subjects for LCIA through the application of conjoint analysis

Background  

Many types of weighting methods, which have integrated the various environmental impacts that are used for life-cycle impact assessment (LCIA), were proposed with the aim of developing the methodology as a useful information resource for decision making, such as in the selection of products. Economic valuation indexes, in particular, have attracted attention, as their assessment results are easy to understand and can be applied in conjunction with other assessment tools, including life-cycle costing (LCC) and environmental accounting. Conjoint analysis has been widely used in market research, and has recently been applied to research in environmental economics. The method enables us to provide two types of assessment results; an economic valuation and a dimensionless index. This method is therefore expected to contribute greatly to increasing the level of research into weighting methodology, in which an international consensus has yet to be established. Conjoint analysis, however, has not previously been applied to LCIA.     

ReCiPe2016: a harmonised life cycle impact assessment method at midpoint and endpoint level

Purpose

Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) translates emissions and resource extractions into a limited number of environmental impact scores by means of so-called characterisation factors. There are two mainstream ways to derive characterisation factors, i.e. at midpoint level and at endpoint level. To further progress LCIA method development, we updated the ReCiPe2008 method to its version of 2016. This paper provides an overview of the key elements of the ReCiPe2016 method.

Methods

We implemented human health, ecosystem quality and resource scarcity as three areas of protection. Endpoint characterisation factors, directly related to the areas of protection, were derived from midpoint characterisation factors with a constant mid-to-endpoint factor per impact category. We included 17 midpoint impact categories.

Results and discussion

The update of ReCiPe provides characterisation factors that are representative for the global scale instead of the European scale, while maintaining the possibility for a number of impact categories to implement characterisation factors at a country and continental scale. We also expanded the number of environmental interventions and added impacts of water use on human health, impacts of water use and climate change on freshwater ecosystems and impacts of water use and tropospheric ozone formation on terrestrial ecosystems as novel damage pathways. Although significant effort has been put into the update of ReCiPe, there is still major improvement potential in the way impact pathways are modelled. Further improvements relate to a regionalisation of more impact categories, moving from local to global species extinction and adding more impact pathways.

Conclusions

Life cycle impact assessment is a fast evolving field of research. ReCiPe2016 provides a state-of-the-art method to convert life cycle inventories to a limited number of life cycle impact scores on midpoint and endpoint level.

     

OMNIITOX - operational life-cycle impact assessment models and information tools for practitioners

This article is the preamble to a set of articles describing initial results from an on-going European Commission funded, 5th Framework project called OMNIITOX, Operational Models aNd Information tools for Industrial applications of eco/TOXicological impact assessments. The different parts of this case study-driven project are briefly presented and put in relation to the aims of contributing to an operational life cycle-impact assessment (LCIA) model for impacts of toxicants. The present situation has been characterised by methodological difficulties, both regarding choice of the characterisation model(s) and limited input data on chemical properties, which often has resulted in the omission of toxicants from the LCIA, or at best focus on well characterised chemicals. The project addresses both problems and integrates models, as well as data, in an information system- the OMNIITOX IS. There is also a need for clarification of the relations between the (environmental) risk assessments of toxicants and LCIA, in addition to investigating the feasibility of introducing LCA into European chemicals legislation, tasks that also were addressed in the project. Keywords: Case studies; characterisation factor; chemicals; environmental risk assessment; hazard assessment; information system; life cycle impact assessment (LCIA); potentially toxic substances; regulation; risk assessment; risk ranking     

Comparative evaluation of Life Cycle Impact assessment methods with a South African case study

Goal and Background  LCIA procedures that have been used in the South Africa manufacturing industry include the CML, Ecopoints, EPS and Eco-indicators 95 and 99 procedures. The aim of this paper is to evaluate and compare the applicability of these European LCIA procedures within the South African context, using a case study. Methods  The five European methods have been evaluated based on the applicability of the respective classification, characterisation, normalization and weighting approaches for the South African situation. Impact categories have been grouped into air, water, land and mined abiotic resources for evaluation purposes. The evaluation and comparison is further based on a cradle-to-gate Screening Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) case study of the production of dyed two-fold wool yarn in South Africa. Results and Discussion  Where land is considered as a separate category (CML, Eco-indicator 99 and EPS), the case study highlights this inventory constituent as the most important. Similarly, water usage is shown as the second most important in one LCIA procedure (EPS) where it is taken into account. However, the impact assessment modelling for these categories may not be applicable for the variance in South African ecosystems. If land and water is excluded from the interpretation, air emissions, coal usage, ash disposal, pesticides and chrome emissions to water are the important constituents in the South African wool industry. Conclusions  In most cases impact categories and procedures defined in the LCIA methods for air pollution, human health and mined abiotic resources are applicable in South Africa. However, the relevance of the methods is reduced where categories are used that impact ecosystem quality, as ecosystems differ significantly between South Africa and the European continent. The methods are especially limited with respect to water and land resources. Normalisation and weighting procedures may also be difficult to adapt to South African conditions, due to the lack of background information and social, cultural and political differences. Recommendations and Outlook  Further research is underway to develop a framework for a South African LCIA procedure, which will be adapted from the available European procedures. The wool SLCA must be revisited to evaluate and compare the proposed framework with the existing LCIA procedures.     

The Environmental Importance of Energy Use in Chemical Production

In many cases, policy makers and laymen perceive harmful emissions from chemical plants as the most important source of environmental impacts in chemical production. As a result, regulations and environmental efforts have tended to focus on this area. Concerns about energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, however, are increasing in all industrial sectors. Using a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach, we analyzed the full environmental impacts of producing 99 chemical products in Western Europe from cradle to factory gate. We applied several life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methods to cover various impact areas. Our analysis shows that for both organic and inorganic chemical production in industrial countries, energy‐related impacts often represent more than half and sometimes up to 80% of the total impacts, according to a range of LCIA methods. Resource use for material feedstock is also important, whereas direct emissions from chemical plants may make up only 5% to 10% of the total environmental impacts. Additionally, the energy‐related impacts of organic chemical production increase with the complexity of the chemicals. The results of this study offer important information for policy makers and sustainability experts in the chemical industry striving to reduce environmental impacts. We identify more sustainable energy production and use as an important option for improvements in the environmental profile of chemical production in industrial countries, especially for the production of advanced organic and fine chemicals.     

Comparative LCA of ethanol versus gasoline in Brazil using different LCIA methods

Purpose

The main objective of this study is to expand the discussion about how, and to what extent, the environmental performance is affected by the use of different life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) illustrated by the case study of the comparison between environmental impacts of gasoline and ethanol form sugarcane in Brazil.

Methods

The following LCIA methods have been considered in the evaluation: CML 2001, Impact 2002+, EDIP 2003, Eco-indicator 99, TRACI 2, ReCiPe, and Ecological Scarcity 2006. Energy allocation was used to split the environmental burdens between ethanol and surplus electricity generated at the sugarcane mill. The phases of feedstock and (bio)fuel production, distribution, and use are included in system boundaries.

Results and discussion

At the midpoint level, comparison of different LCIA methods showed that ethanol presents lower impacts than gasoline in important categories such as global warming, fossil depletion, and ozone layer depletion. However, ethanol presents higher impacts in acidification, eutrophication, photochemical oxidation, and agricultural land use categories. Regarding to single-score indicators, ethanol presented better performance than gasoline using ReCiPe Endpoint LCIA method. Using IMPACT 2002+, Eco-indicator 99, and Ecological Scarcity 2006, higher scores are verified for ethanol, mainly due to the impacts related to particulate emissions and land use impacts.

Conclusions

Although there is a relative agreement on the results regarding equivalent environmental impact categories using different LCIA methods at midpoint level, when single-score indicators are considered, use of different LCIA methods lead to different conclusions. Single-score results also limit the interpretability at endpoint level, as a consequence of small contributions of relevant environmental impact categories weighted in a single-score indicator.     

Comparison between three different LCIA methods for aquatic ecotoxicity and a product environmental risk assessment

Background and Objective  In the OMNIITOX project 11 partners have the common objective to improve environmental management tools for the assessment of (eco)toxicological impacts. The detergent case study aims at: i) comparing three Procter &c Gamble laundry detergent forms (Regular Powder-RP, Compact Powder-CP and Compact Liquid-CL) regarding their potential impacts on aquatic ecotoxicity, ii) providing insights into the differences between various Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) methods with respect to data needs and results and iii) comparing the results from Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) with results from an Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA). Material and Methods  The LCIA has been conducted with EDIP97 (chronic aquatic ecotoxicity) [1], USES-LCA (freshwater and marine water aquatic ecotoxicity, sometimes referred to as CML2001) [2, 3] and IMPACT 2002 (covering freshwater aquatic ecotoxicity) [4]. The comparative product ERA is based on the EU Ecolabel approach for detergents [5] and EUSES [6], which is based on the Technical Guidance Document (TGD) of the EU on Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) of chemicals [7]. Apart from the Eco-label approach, all calculations are based on the same set of physico-chemical and toxicological effect data to enable a better comparison of the methodological differences. For the same reason, the system boundaries were kept the same in all cases, focusing on emissions into water at the disposal stage. Results and Discussion  Significant differences between the LCIA methods with respect to data needs and results were identified. Most LCIA methods for freshwater ecotoxicity and the ERA see the compact and regular powders as similar, followed by compact liquid. IMPACT 2002 (for freshwater) suggests the liquid is equally as good as the compact powder, while the regular powder comes out worse by a factor of 2. USES-LCA for marine water shows a very different picture seeing the compact liquid as the clear winner over the powders, with the regular powder the least favourable option. Even the LCIA methods which result in die same product ranking, e.g. EDIP97 chronic aquatic ecotoxicity and USES-LCA freshwater ecotoxicity, significantly differ in terms of most contributing substances. Whereas, according to IMPACT 2002 and USES-LCA marine water, results are entirely dominated by inorganic substances, the other LCIA methods and the ERA assign a key role to surfactants. Deviating results are mainly due to differences in the fate and exposure modelling and, to a lesser extent, to differences in the toxicological effect calculations. Only IMPACT 2002 calculates the effects based on a mean value approach, whereas all other LCIA methods and the ERA tend to prefer a PNEC-based approach. In a comparative context like LCA the OMNIITOX project has taken the decision for a combined mean and PNEC-based approach, as it better represents the ‘average’ toxicity while still taking into account more sensitive species. However, the main reason for deviating results remains in the calculation of the residence time of emissions in the water compartments. Conclusion and Outlook  The situation that different LCIA methods result in different answers to the question concerning which detergent type is to be preferred regarding the impact category aquatic ecotoxicity is not satisfactory, unless explicit reasons for the differences are identifiable. This can hamper practical decision support, as LCA practitioners usually will not be in a position to choose the ’right’ LCIA method for their specific case. This puts a challenge to the entire OMNIITOX project to develop a method, which finds common ground regarding fate, exposure and effect modelling to overcome the current situa-tion of diverging results and to reflect most realistic conditions.     

Developing characterisation factors for land fragmentation impacts on biodiversity in LCA: key learnings from a sugarcane case study

Purpose

Habitat change was identified by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment as the main direct driver of biodiversity loss. However, while habitat loss is already implemented in Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) methods, the additional impact on biodiversity due to habitat fragmentation is not assessed yet. Thus, the goal of this study was to include fragmentation effects from land occupation and transformation at both midpoint and endpoint levels in LCIA.

Methods

One promising metric, combining the landscape spatial configuration with species characteristics, is the metapopulation capacity λ, which can be used to rank landscapes in terms of their capacity to support viable populations spatially structured. A methodology to derive worldwide regionalised fragmentation indexes based on λ was used and combined with the Species Fragmented-Area Relationship (SFAR), which relies on λ to assess a species loss due to fragmentation. We adapted both developments to assess fragmentation impacts due to land occupation and transformation at both midpoint and endpoint levels in LCIA. An application to sugarcane production occurring in different geographical areas, more or less sensitive to land fragmentation, was performed.

Results and discussion

The comparison to other existing LCIA indicators highlighted its great potential for complementing current assessments through fragmentation effect inclusion. Last, both models were discussed through the evaluation grid used by the UNEP-SETAC land use LCIA working group for biodiversity impact assessment models.

Conclusions

Midpoint and endpoint characterisation factors were successfully developed to include the impacts of habitat fragmentation on species in LCIA. For now, they are provided for bird species in all forest ecoregions belonging to the biodiversity hotspots. Further work is required to develop characterisation factors for all taxa and all terrestrial ecoregions.

     

Characterisation and Normalisation Factors for Life Cycle Impact Assessment Mined Abiotic Resources Categories in South Africa: The manufacturing of catalytic converter exhaust systems as a case study (10 pp)

Goal and Background Current Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) procedures have demonstrated certain limitations in the South African manufacturing industry. The aim of this paper is to propose new characterisation and normalisation factors for classified mined abiotic resource depletion categories in the South African context. These factors should reflect the importance of mined resources as they relate to region-specific resource depletion. The method can also be applied to determine global factors. Methods The reserve base (as in 2001) of the most commonly produced minerals in South Africa is used as basis to determine characterisation factors for a non-renewable mineral resources category. The average production of these minerals from 1991 to 2000 is compared to economically Demonstrated and Demonstrated Marginal Reserves (and not ultimate reserves) to obtain the characterisation factors in equivalence units, with platinum as the reference mineral. Similarly, for a non-renewable energy resources category, coal is used in South Africa as equivalent unit as it is the most important fossil fuel for the country. Crude oil and natural gas resources are currently obtained from reserves elsewhere in the world and characterisation factors are therefore determined using global resources and production levels. The normalisation factors are based on the total economic reserves of key South African minerals and world non-renewable energy resources respectively. A case study of the manufacturing of an exhaust system for a standard sedan is used to compare LCIA results for mined abiotic resource categories that are based on current LCIA factors and the new South African factors. Results and Discussion The South African LCIA procedure differs from current methods in that it shows the importance of other mined resources, i.e. iron ore and crude oil, relative to PGMs and coal for the manufacturing life cycle of the exhaust system. With respect to PGMs, the current characterisation factors are based on the concentrations of the metals in the ores and the ultimate reserves, which are erroneous with respect to the actual availability of the mineral resources and the depletion burden placed on these minerals is consequently too high. Conclusions The South African LCIA procedure for mined abiotic resources depletion shows the significance of choosing a method, which is inline with the current situation in the mining industry and its limitations. Recommendations and Outlook It is proposed to similarly investigate the impacts of the use of other natural resource groups. Water, specifically, must receive attention in the characterisation phase of LCIAs in South African LCAs.     

Comparing priority setting in integrated hazardous substance assessment and in life cycle impact assessment

Purpose  

The purpose of the study was to compare three recent Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) models in prioritizing substances and products from national emission inventories. The focus was on ecotoxic and human toxic impacts. The aim was to test model output against expert judgment on chemical risk assessment.     

Evaluation of Long-Term Impacts in LCA

When looking at a product’s life cycle, emissions and resource uses, as well as the resulting impacts, usually occur at different points in time. For instance, construction materials are often ‘stored’ in buildings for many decades before they are recycled or disposed of. The goal of the LCA Discussion Forum 22 was to present and discuss arguments pro and contra a temporally differentiated weighting of impacts. The discussion forum started with three talks that illustrated the importance of temporal aspects in LCI and LCIA. The following two presentations discussed the economical principles of discounting, the adequacy of this concept within LCA, and the ethical questions involved. After one further short presentation, three groups were formed that discussed questions about temporally-differentiated weighting, and consequences for LCI as well as LCIA (damage assessment and final weighting). The discussion forum ended with the following conclusions: (a) long-term impacts should be considered in LCA, and (b) long-term emissions should be inventoried separately from short-term emissions. There was no consensus on whether short-term and long-term impacts should be weighted equally. Some prefer to weigh short-term emissions higher, because they are considered to be closer. Consistent and approved forecasts should be used when considering future changes in environmental conditions in LCI and LCIA.     

Life cycle impact assessment and interpretation of municipal solid waste management scenarios based on the midpoint and endpoint approaches

Purpose  

Few studies have examined differing interpretations of life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) results between midpoints and endpoints for the same systems. This paper focuses on the LCIA of municipal solid waste (MSW) systems by taking both the midpoint and endpoint approaches and uses LIME (Life Cycle Impact Assessment Method based on Endpoint Modeling, version 2006). With respect to global and site-dependent factors, environmental impact categories were divided into global, regional, and local scales. Results are shown as net emissions consisting of system emissions and avoided emissions.     

Conserved Region Amplification Polymorphism (CoRAP), a Novel Marker Technique for Plant Genotyping in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Salvia miltiorrhiza</Emphasis>

Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM), a widely popular Chinese herb, is grown in various regions in China. Identifying SMs grown in different provinces of China is difficult, and therefore genotyping these collections would be highly valuable. Based on the techniques of sequence-related amplified polymorphism and target region amplified polymorphism, a novel PCR-based molecular marker technique called conserved region amplification polymorphism (CoRAP) is reported in this study to genotype SMs. The CoRAP technique is based on the use of two primers: fixed and arbitrary primers. The former is derived from target EST sequences deposited in Genbank; while, the core sequence (CACGC) of the latter is a conserved region found in most introns. In the present study, we utilized CoRAP to genotype SMs from different geographical origins. PCR amplification is performed for 30 cycles at an annealing temperature of 52°C. Each PCR reaction has generated as many as 30–50 fragments of 50 to 1,000 bp in size. The successful DNA genotyping of SMs by CoRAP was achieved. This new genotyping method is rapid, efficient, and reproducible.     

The formulation of life cycle impact assessment framework for Malaysia using Eco-indicator

Background, aim, and scope  

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is an emerging supporting tool designed to help practitioner in systematically assessing the environmental performance of selected product’s life cycle. A product’s life cycle includes the extraction of raw materials, production, and usage, and ends with waste treatment or disposal. Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) as a part of LCA is a method used to derive the environmental burdens from selected product’s stages. LCIA is structured in classification, characterization, normalization and weighting. Presently most of the LCIA practices use European database to establish the characterization, normalization and weighting value. However, using these values for local LCA practice might not be able to reflect the actual Malaysian’s environmental scenario. The aim of this study is to create a Malaysian version of normalization and weighting value using the pollution database within Malaysia.