The objective of sustainable waste management is to deal with society's waste in a way that is environmentally efficient, economically affordable and socially acceptable. To assess such sustainability, tools are needed which can predict the likely overall environmental burdens of any waste management system. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) can be applied to waste management systems to assess their overall environmental burdens. The concept of Integrated Waste Management (IWM) combines waste streams, waste collection, treatment and disposal methods, with the objective of achieving environmental benefits, economic optimisation and societal acceptability. I CA tools applied to IWM systems can support the development of truly sustainable waste management systems. In general, LCA practitioners have been very much focused on the methods and the issues surrounding product life cycle development. There is now also considerable interest in the application of LCA to whole waste management systems rather than the specific waste management process used to treat a single product. The results of this area of research lead to the optimisation of complete waste management systems, which treat municipal solid waste. A forum was established in April 1998, in London, UK to support the development of LCA techniques specifically for IWM systems. There are now approximately 30 members from 10 countries (Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, UK, USA) who regularly attend meetings. Membership of the group is by invitation.
Inrternational Expert Group on Life Cycle Assessment for Integrated Waste Management
Masoni, P.;
2003-05-01
Abstract
The objective of sustainable waste management is to deal with society's waste in a way that is environmentally efficient, economically affordable and socially acceptable. To assess such sustainability, tools are needed which can predict the likely overall environmental burdens of any waste management system. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) can be applied to waste management systems to assess their overall environmental burdens. The concept of Integrated Waste Management (IWM) combines waste streams, waste collection, treatment and disposal methods, with the objective of achieving environmental benefits, economic optimisation and societal acceptability. I CA tools applied to IWM systems can support the development of truly sustainable waste management systems. In general, LCA practitioners have been very much focused on the methods and the issues surrounding product life cycle development. There is now also considerable interest in the application of LCA to whole waste management systems rather than the specific waste management process used to treat a single product. The results of this area of research lead to the optimisation of complete waste management systems, which treat municipal solid waste. A forum was established in April 1998, in London, UK to support the development of LCA techniques specifically for IWM systems. There are now approximately 30 members from 10 countries (Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, UK, USA) who regularly attend meetings. Membership of the group is by invitation.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
